Brought to you by:

Attigo, CampusLogic, Inceptia, AccessLex, ELM Resources, FATV and ProEd. Thank you to all of our advertisers.

It's becoming increasingly important for Americans to earn a postsecondary education to remain competitive in the changing economy, but many higher education institutions are falling short when it comes to helping students graduate, increase their earnings potential, and repay their loans, according to a new report from Third Way.

What’s your best advice for completing the FAFSA? What do you wish students and parents knew that would simplify the process? Do you have an approach to FAFSA outreach that has proven to be effective? NASFAA invites you to share your advice with your colleagues in one or more short, informal video clips no longer than 30 seconds in length. Videos may appear in an upcoming webinar or on NASFAA’s website. Read on for more information on how to submit your video(s).

"More than 300 higher education institutions and advocacy groups sent a letter to congressional leaders today asking that the value of the Pell Grant be indexed to inflation. After the upcoming academic year, the value of the grant will not automatically go up to adjust for inflation for the first time in six years," Inside Higher Ed reports.

"The House has passed one bill, and is likely to pass another, that would provide funding for people to enroll in certificate programs, apprenticeships, bootcamps and other technical education programs. But a new study questions the quality of these programs, as well as the evidence that demonstrates their efficacy," according to U.S. News & World Report.

"Have public funding cuts caused colleges and universities to raise tuition? It's a deceptively simple question. And it's caused two different camps to dig in, look at similar data and yell past each other with very different answers," Inside Higher Ed reports.

"'Prof wants to 'blow up meritocracy' with 'admissions lottery'' is the headline on an article on the conservative website Campus Reform. And the idea that a professor might want to eliminate merit in admissions is of course one that might scare many educators," Inside Higher Ed reports.

"Fifty-eight percent of Republicans in America now say that colleges and universities have a negative impact on the direction of the country, according to an annual survey conducted by Pew Research Center," WBUR reports. "The same survey found that 72 percent of responding Democrats hold a positive view, raising the question: When did higher education become a partisan issue?"

"The Department of Education has placed restrictions on access to federal student aid for West Virginia public universities after the state was late submitting required annual financial statements for the third year in a row," Inside Higher Ed reports.

"Is it ethical for a college to offer a lower discount rate to a prospective student who is likely to enroll than to one who is on the fence? Is it ethical to wait-list a student who is at the top of a college's applicant pool because you assume you are their 'safety school'?" Jim Jump writes in an opinion piece for Inside Higher Ed.

"When Betsy DeVos was tapped as U.S. Education Secretary, educators and advocates were terrified the longtime voucher fan would try to 'privatize' the nation's schools. But DeVos has now been in office for going on six months, and she's been way more active on higher education than she has on K-12," according to Education Week's Politics K-12 blog.

VIEW NEXT ISSUE

Contact us to submit questions, content or to purchase advertisements.