America's biggest rip-off: college tuition bubble and student debt escalate

The Coming College Education Bubble
Higher education's price-earnings ratio looks like Nevada housing circa 2007. The overwhelming cultural consensus of the post-WWII generation was that if you are middle-class, then you simply must own your own home and your Children must go to college. Out of that cultural consensus emerged a complex system of Tax Breaks and special Lending deals designed to make sure that the number of Americans who bought houses and bachelor's degrees was as high as possible--or maybe more so. Many people now...

Financial aid: Tax credit extended as college tuition continues to rise
Senate passes College Tuition Financial Aid bill as College Tuition continues to rise. Even with financial aid, are rising costs the only factor pushing Tuition beyond some Students' reach?...

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE? Higher educations price-earnings ratio looks like Nevada housing circa 20
Higher Education BUBBLE? Higher education’s price-earnings ratio looks like Nevada housing circa 2007. “The financial data are making a College Education tougher and tougher to defend. If we were to follow the lead of college marketing departments and treat Tuition as an investment, what price-earnings ratio-or P/E-would we assign to it? Unlike a traditional stock, both the price and the earnings are fairly opaque (a warning signal in and of itself), but let’s mak...

Neb. college tuition rates will remain low for illegal immigrants
A judge in Nebraska says some Illegal Immigrants can pay in-state College Tuition rates....

College tuition: Judge throws out suit against illegals
College Tuition suit claimed Nebraskans' taxes were subsidizing illegals' education. Judge rules plaintiffs should seek federal action....

Thatcher, Reagan, and Those Revolting British Students
The images of violent Protests in London coming in from across the pond are disturbing to most Americans. But if some are tempted to find comfort in the idea that what is going on over there could never happen here, they should think again. At issue in the United Kingdom is the announced policy change, more than a year under discussion and review, to subsidize less of the College Tuition of Students. In the recent past, the top amount (calculated here in dollars) a student would pay for a year'...

Thatcher, Reagan, and Those Revolting British Students
The images of violent Protests in London coming in from across the pond are disturbing to most Americans. But if some are tempted to find comfort in the idea that what is going on over there could never happen here, they should think again. At issue in the United Kingdom is the announced policy change, more than a year under discussion and review, to subsidize less of the College Tuition of Students. In the recent past, the top amount (calculated here in dollars) a student would pay for a year'...

Gov. McDonnell unveils budget amendment proposals
» Gallery: Gov. Bob McDonnell presents his Budget recommendations to the legislature's money committees REVENUE: -Collect an additional $337 million in general fund taxes and transferred reserve cash. - ... -Collect an additional $337 million in general fund taxes and transferred reserve cash. -Use $191 million in cuts, consolidations and efficiencies recommended by a government reform and restructuring commission. Higher Education: -Add $3.7 million for College Tuition and grants. -Cu...

Len McCluskey: head of Britain's biggest union praises 'magnificent' student protest movement
The Student Protests over the Coalition’s Tuition fee rises has placed trade Unions “on the spot” and given new impetus for a fresh wave of strikes, the head of Britain's biggest union has warned....

Oral Lee Brown, Oakland Woman, Sends Dozens Of Underprivileged Kids To College
In 1987, Oakland Real Estate agent Oral Lee Brown adopted a first grade class and committed to sending each eligible Student to college. She didn't know where the funds would come from, but she was set on seeing underprivileged kids have a chance for Higher Education. When the time came, almost all of the 23 students went on to college thanks to "Mama Brown," who had tucked away a Nest Egg saved from her Real Estate income. Now, Brown's foundation continues to make dreams come true for Oakland...

McDonnell punishes VCU for tuition increase
Gov. Bob McDonnell said Friday that he has withheld state money equal to half of Virginia Commonwealth University's 24 percent Tuition increase as a message to colleges and universities about rising Tuition rates. Noting that tuitions for Virginia Students have doubled in the past 10 years, McDonnell said, "That is unacceptable." McDonnell on Friday proposed a number of Budget amendments in remarks to the General Assembly's money committees. The room was lined with Lobbyists. VCU raised Tuition ...

McDonnell's Dumbest Budget Move...So Far
According to the State Council for Higher Education, "State support for Virginia public higher education will be reduced by more than $400 million or 27% by FY2012 from the original FY2010 Budget, and is 33% below the FY2001 level after adjusting for Inflation...Federal stimulus spending permitted colleges and universities to limit Tuition and fee increases...in FY2011." The State Council also noted, historically "the Commonwealth restricted Tuition increases during a period of strong economic ...

McDonnell punishes VCU for tuition increase
Gov. Bob McDonnell said Friday that he has withheld state money equal to half of Virginia Commonwealth University's 24 percent Tuition increase as a message to colleges and universities about rising Tuition rates. Noting that tuitions for Virginia Students have doubled in the past 10 years, McDonnell said, "That is unacceptable." McDonnell on Friday proposed a number of Budget amendments in remarks to the General Assembly's money committees. The room was lined with Lobbyists. VCU raised Tuition ...

The DREAM Will Never Die: Senate Blocks The DREAM Act 55-41
Above are Renata and Ada repping the Student Immigrant Movement, which I am a proud member of, but see this post from United We Dream for more reflections from the leaders of the migrant youth movement. By now you've probably heard that the DREAM Act was blocked in the U.S. Senate by five Democrats and 36 Republicans. Before I continue I want to be clear about what happened: Everywhere I look Mainstream Media who up until this point as all but ignored the migrant youth movement is writing he...

Students call on Branstad to fund higher education
University of Iowa Students plan to push Gov.-elect Terry Branstad to protect Higher Education funding in next year’s Budget. The student body’s governmental relations liason sent out an e-mail to Students last week, urging them to make contact with the incoming administration or their local lawmakers. Try to add personal details: you had to take on a part time job because of rising Tuition, your mom lost her job and you don’t know if you and your parents will be able to contin...

U.S. students crossing the pond for college
When Adelaide Waldrop learned that she had been consigned to the wait list at each of the four universities she wanted most to attend, it was as if all the excitement had drained from her collegiate quest. Then she remembered her wild-card school: the University of St. Andrews, the medieval cobblestone campus in Scotland. Now Waldrop, of Silver Spring, is a St. Andrews sophomore, one of a growing number of American Students who enroll at top-ranked British universities, which offer the prest...

Plan bans illegals from public universities
The "DREAM Act" plan, defeated in Congress today, would have given benefits and rights to Illegal Aliens who want to go to school in the U.S., but the state of Virginia isn't prepared to depend on what Washington decides - it has its own plan to address the situation: a ban on those Students in public colleges and universities. A leading GOP legislator in the Virginia House of Delegates is poised to introduce a bill which would prohibit Illegal Aliens from attending public colleges and universi...

Columbia News
Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, kicked off a year-long series of “Conversations with the Country” at Columbia’s World Leaders Forum on April 18. In his address, he emphasized both the proper strategic role of Military power in U.S. Foreign Policy and the importance of investing in the nation’s Military Veterans through Higher Education, career opportunities and support services. “This is the beginning of an effort to connect with communi...

Academia Is Revolting!
In the Budget squeeze that every government of affluent democracies is facing, increases in Tuition are causing some of the most vocal and nasty reactions. British Students are storming offices, creating chaos, and threatening mayhem. Once, Coal Miners brought down British Governments. Now, parasitical College Students threaten to break the British government. California Students are doing much the same, although the bias in favor of in-state Illegal Alien Students and against out-of-state Ameri...

Is he kidding? Gov. Chris Christie wants more tax cuts for the rich
A few days after saying New Jersey is so broke it must cut medical benefits for Retirees and freeze their pensions forever, Gov. Chris Christie now says he wants to cut income taxes for the rich. Think about those priorities. Middle-class families just lost their property tax rebates. Schools lost nearly $1 billion in funding, their biggest hit ever. Thousands of working poor families were closed out of Health Care programs. And our colleges and universities were whacked hard, forcing Tuition hi...

Universities 'face 6% budget cut'
Universities in England are expected to face cuts of around 6% on last year's funding, as their Budget allocations for 2011-12 are unveiled. This is likely to mean a reduction of £300-400m in the total grants given to universities this year. But the settlement will not include the expected teaching Budget Cuts of up to 80% that universities hope to replace with annual fees of up to £9,000. These are not planned until the new fees regime is introduced in 2012. This year's ...

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: Is Going To An Elite College Worth The Cost? The sluggish economy
Higher Education BUBBLE UPDATE: Is Going To An Elite College Worth The Cost? “The sluggish economy and rising costs of college have only intensified questions about whether expensive, prestigious colleges make any difference. Do their graduates make more money? Get into better professional programs? Make better connections? And are they more satisfied with their lives, or at least with their work?” ...

Brian Sandoval shows hes not afraid to reach out to the left
Gov.-elect Brian Sandoval may be hard right on taxes, but in other policy pursuits, he’s taking a more moderate tack. One notable and new example is his push for Private School vouchers, which prompted hand-wringing and excitement last week from people on both sides of the debate. Instead of making the change through legislative action, which could be in effect as early as 2011, Sandoval will seek to do it by changing the Nevada Constitution — a process that will take at least five years, hi...

Dillard's comes back from the dead
FORTUNE -- This could be the year for retail's big comeback. Retail companies, maimed during the crisis, are finally reporting Balance Sheets that contain glimmers of hope. Even some Department Stores -- a sector hit particularly hard by the Recession -- have regained strength. Among them is an unlikely survivor: Dillard's (DDS, Fortune 500), a historically unloved player in an unloved sector, reported a promising Third Quarter for 2010. Net income was $14.4 million, or 22 cents a share, up from...

Applied Signal, AT&T, Chesapeake are big movers
The telecommunications company will buy $1.92 billion worth of broadcast spectrum to ramp up its high-speed "4G" network. Billionaire investor Carl Icahn increased his stake in the Natural Gas producer to more than 38.6 million shares, or 5.8 percent of stock outstanding. The Medical Device maker's CEO plans to retire in April, but will remain until the company names a successor. The Ratings agency Moody's downgraded its Debt rating on the bank alongside rate cuts of four other major Irish fi...