The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) released a new report today outlining several root causes of the lack of affordable and accessible higher education in America. Report authors Paul Weinstein Jr. and Veronica Goodman propose increasing price transparency and ensuring prospective students get the credit they’ve earned before beginning their degree.
“Far too often, proposals to address the skyrocketing financial costs facing college bound students involve subsidizing an already broken system with more taxpayer dollars,” said Paul Weinstein, Jr., Senior Fellow at the Progressive Policy Institute. “PPI’s recommendations for policymakers constitute an actionable, pragmatic roadmap for substantive change that will give more students opportunities to succeed without bankrupting their financial future”.
The skyrocketing cost of higher education affects young people across the country, with more than one in five U.S. households holding a student loan and the increased costs of college outpacing inflation nearly fivefold since 1983. Policymakers’ increased focus on proposals to expand financial aid and loans – or cancel them entirely – neglects the reality that these remedies would not prevent the problem from repeating itself year after year.
The report proposes the following reforms to expand access to higher education and increase affordability:
The White House should push for legislation that gives the Department of Education greater authority to establish policies for Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and dual enrollment course credit and ensure that these credits transfer automatically.
Colleges should be required to disclose before a student matriculates the number of credits, including through AP, IB, or from community college coursework, that will be accepted.
The Department of Education should require that colleges provide easy access to information on transfer credits.
States should set clear standards for minimum test scores on AP tests and GPA-level coursework required to earn college credits.
Read the report here:
The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org.
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Media Contact for PPI: Aaron White – awhite@ppionline.org
