January 18, 2012
by Reginald Stuart
When
President Barack Obama rolled out his higher education agenda early in his
term, his ambitious goals were widely embraced by higher education leaders and
major employers across the country as the right ideas at the right time for
America.
Today,
as Obama readies for a re-election bid, support for his goals seems as strong
as ever in the higher education community. Less than hoped for has been
realized, for sure, they acknowledge. They say some of Obama’s efforts have
fallen victim to a stubborn economy that is generating far less tax revenue for
the government to fund his and other programs. His agenda also has been hurt by
divisive bickering among political leaders at all levels of government over
spending priorities and education funding.
The
score on his first term, observers say: mixed, with an explanation.
“Given
the gravity of the issues with which he’s been dealing and the lack of positive
responses, he’s done well,” says Dr. Charlie Nelms, chancellor of North
Carolina Central University, agreeing with the sentiments of others. “He
(Obama) had to use a lot of political capital on the health care bill and a lot
of energy on the deficit,” Nelms says. “He’s had two wars and the economy. It’s
pretty clear bipartisanship hasn’t been there.”
Obama
came out the gate with myriad big ideas for American higher education. Basing
much of his case for action on an assortment of studies showing steady slippage
by the United States in educational achievement compared to other
industrialized nations, Obama challenged education leaders and employers to
step up their game lest the nation continue to fall behind in educating the
kinds of knowledgeable people needed to keep the nation competitive. He set a
goal for the nation of boosting its college graduation rate by 20 percent by
2020, with special emphasis on training students in science, technology,
engineering and math, or STEM.
To
reach the big goal and make college more affordable for more people, Obama
proposed pouring hundreds of millions more federal money into higher education
with greater support for community colleges, tax credits for parents with
children in college and replacing the student loan guarantee program with
lower-cost direct government loans. Most significant to colleges serving
low-income students, Obama proposed significant enhancements for the Pell Grant
program, including boosting the size of individual Pell Grants and changing the
program’s status to that of an entitlement program.
The
agenda moved ahead with some degree of success for a while, despite opposition,
mostly from Republicans. Then came the mid-term elections in November 2010.
Democrats lost control of the House of Representatives, thrusting Obama’s
overall agenda, including his plans for higher education, into the path of even
stronger headwinds of opposition.
The
higher education tax credit became law as did the overhaul of the student loan
program eliminating the middleman (banks and other private lenders) and
lowering student borrowing costs. The long-term plans for significant increases
in funding for community colleges have not fared well.
Meanwhile,
Republicans, asserting they were trying to rein in federal spending, blocked
efforts to change the status of the Pell Grant to a guaranteed entitlement and
forced Obama to give up funding of summer Pell Grants in exchange for raising
the maximum amount of an individual grant by $500 to $5,500. Republicans had
wanted to lower the grant maximum to $4,800. They have vowed to continue their
budget cutting efforts, including Pell Grant funding, if they keep control of
the House.
“We’re
at a real crossroads right now,” says Edith Bartley, director of government
affairs for the United Negro College Fund. She echoes the thoughts of others in
expressing uneasiness about the future of once reliable help for colleges with
a history of serving racial minorities.
“Unfortunately,
with the economy and climate in Congress, we’re in the process of chartering
some uncharted waters,” says Bartley.
Dr.
Glen Jones, interim provost at Arkansas State University and president of the
National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, shares
Bartley’s sentiments. Jones agrees with others in saying he did not think Obama
was overly ambitious in his call to arms, that there is ample data supporting
bold steps to address what some are calling an emerging crisis in American
education.
“People
in general support the vision, but it is directly limited by the lack of
funding,” says Jones. “I don’t think his (Obama’s) advisers realized what it
would take to achieve it.”
Jones
says “a lot of people support Obama’s vision.” He thinks the president just
needs to do a better job of getting a greater buy-in from a wider base of
people.
“It’s
a vision that has to be owned by the people, not just the president,” Jones
says.
Delaware
State University President Dr. Harry Williams, who gives Obama high marks for
his “aggressive agenda,” says “institutions on the ground,” such as his
college, now need to “work even harder to make those things happen. The
reality, in terms of what he’s (Obama) up against, it’s an uphill battle,” says
Williams.
“I
know we are going to have to do our part,” he says. “I think we can get there.
I’m optimistic.”
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