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New plan calls for free higher education for public service
By Nicole Loring
Posted: 11/7/07, 11:18 PM EST Section: News
One concern Biklen brought up about this proposal was whether untrained young people would be asked to do jobs for which they were unqualified, such as teaching high-needs children. He also said Richardson's idea was not radical, mentioning that loan forgiveness programs already exist in medical and education fields.
Africa Belgrave, a College of Arts and Sciences junior, said if Richardson's program had been available to her in high school, she would have chosen to go to a public university instead of Syracuse. "For two years of free tuition? Definitely," she said.
Freshman Sean O'Connell said he would have also chosen a public university under Richardson's plan.
"The big factor is money," said the music composition major, adding that students may be more likely to attend private universities if a tuition cut were offered in exchange for public service.
SU does not offer loan forgiveness to students who volunteer in the public sector, said Interim Director of Financial Aid Kaye DeVesty.
"I think that we would be unhappy if Syracuse University students weren't eligible for this plan," DeVesty said. She was unsure whether SU might try to give its own loan forgiveness if Richardson's plan excluded private institutions.
"I don't know how we would make a counteroffer - we just haven't thought of it," DeVesty said. "We certainly want students to take advantage of this if they were coming to Syracuse, so that would be a loss for us."
If the bill were passed, Biklen said private universities would probably lobby to have a comparable program so that loan forgiveness would be offered to students at private schools.
"I would guess that if Congress were to legislate this at the request of a president, we'd see a lot of tweaking of the funding formula so that private institutions would be included," he said.
The biggest issue with Richardson's plan would be cost, Biklen said. "It's not based on family wealth or personal wealth, so it becomes potentially costly," said Biklen, noting that some small government groups might be opposed to the plan if they thought the government was getting involved in something it shouldn't.
Africa Belgrave, a College of Arts and Sciences junior, said if Richardson's program had been available to her in high school, she would have chosen to go to a public university instead of Syracuse. "For two years of free tuition? Definitely," she said.
Freshman Sean O'Connell said he would have also chosen a public university under Richardson's plan.
"The big factor is money," said the music composition major, adding that students may be more likely to attend private universities if a tuition cut were offered in exchange for public service.
SU does not offer loan forgiveness to students who volunteer in the public sector, said Interim Director of Financial Aid Kaye DeVesty.
"I think that we would be unhappy if Syracuse University students weren't eligible for this plan," DeVesty said. She was unsure whether SU might try to give its own loan forgiveness if Richardson's plan excluded private institutions.
"I don't know how we would make a counteroffer - we just haven't thought of it," DeVesty said. "We certainly want students to take advantage of this if they were coming to Syracuse, so that would be a loss for us."
If the bill were passed, Biklen said private universities would probably lobby to have a comparable program so that loan forgiveness would be offered to students at private schools.
"I would guess that if Congress were to legislate this at the request of a president, we'd see a lot of tweaking of the funding formula so that private institutions would be included," he said.
The biggest issue with Richardson's plan would be cost, Biklen said. "It's not based on family wealth or personal wealth, so it becomes potentially costly," said Biklen, noting that some small government groups might be opposed to the plan if they thought the government was getting involved in something it shouldn't.
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