How can we get more poor kids to graduate college?

Today let's talk about the challenges of being poor and going to college. As you might suspect, poor kids are much more likely to drop out of school, whether its college or high school.

This article and video from the New York Times shows the challenges that poor kids kids facr when going to college

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/23/education/poor-students-struggle-as-class-plays-a-greater-role-in-success.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

So, How can we get more poor kids to graduate college? Post a response.

How can we get more males to graduate college?

Why are women graduating college at rates far higher than men? It used to be that the best students were always boys. They were always the honor students and did best in the SAT's and AP classes. But in the past 30 years this has been totally turned around. Now most valedictorians are girls, and most colleges have a majority female population. So why are women outperforming men in college (and high school as well)?

We will watch the following video clip
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/41928806/ns/business-us_business/t/men-falling-behind-women/#.Ua40m6Ip92A


This article tells the story of Clark University of Atlanta, which is 71% female
http://savannahnow.com/stories/033102/LOCBlackMenShortage.shtml



This article says that money and some other factors are to blame for males not going to college and graduating college as much as females
http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2013/03/27/college-graduation-gender-salaries/



So what do you think? How can we get more males to graduate college? Post a comment.

Who has the best plan to fix student loan debt?

Who has the best plan to fix the Student Loan Debt problem? This is the question facing everyone on the political spectrum because it doesn't matter whether you are a Democrat, Republican, Liberal or Conservative, student loan debt hits every family in some way.

To get perspective on how student loan debt affects students who have just graduated college, as a class we will watch the video clip Graduating into Debt 
http://www.nytimes.com/video/2012/05/11/business/100000001500508/graduating-into-debt.html

After watching the video clip, you can read the full article here http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/13/business/student-loans-weighing-down-a-generation-with-heavy-debt.html?pagewanted=all

Read this article and then post a comment: Who has the best plan? Obama, Elizabeth Warren, or the G.O.P.?
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/05/student-loan-interest-rate-plan-obama-republican-warren

In your comment, remember to cite the article at least once. You can also respond to other student's posts and comments. But remember to take a stand and choose who has the best plan.

Do loans enable colleges to continue raising their tuition?

It's no secret that college is more expensive than ever. As graduating seniors, many of you know what schools you are going to and how much tuition you have to pay. Most of you will have to take out student loans, most of which are backed by Fannie Mae (The government agency that guarantees and funds most student loans).
Since you cannot get rid of student loan debt by declaring bankruptcy, the banks are more than willing to loan kids the money for college. And since colleges know that students are guaranteed to get loans, they continue to raise tuition because they get paid no matter what (even if you drop out of college, you are still responsible for your loan). Click on the links below

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57517032/why-college-tuition-keeps-rising/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/post/chart-of-the-day-college-tuition-is-out-of-control/2011/10/27/gIQABi4sMM_blog.html

Bill Bennet was saying that colleges were raising tuition too much in 1987! Read the article below:
http://www.nytimes.com/1987/02/18/opinion/our-greedy-colleges.html

To sum up, I think the government should no longer back student loans, and if you manage to get a private loan, students should be able to discharge this debt via bankruptcy. What would be the result? Tuition would fall sharply because most people don't have 30 to 50 thousand dollars in their bank accounts to pay this ludicrously high tuition. If a college charged too much and people couldn't afford it, they would go out of business.

What do you think? Should the government stop funding Fannie Mae and NOT guarantee student loans? Post a response.