Oregon Student Association
Founded in 1975, OSA is a coalition of student governments dedicated to the representation, service, and protection of the collective interests of over 100,000 students in postsecondary education.
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Internet Digest
September 25, 2006
3. Measuring Up Report: Oregon Fails Again in Affordability
On September 7, the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education released its 2006 Measuring Up Report, a national biennial report that “grades” each state on its performance in postsecondary education.
Oregon again received an “F” in affordability.
Said OSA Board Chair Megan Driver, “Students aren’t shocked that Oregon again received an “F” in affordability. We’re paying the highest tuition ever and are facing the highest debt levels in history. Legislators did take a very important step in the right direction last session when they made an historical investment in need-based aid. But our tuition continues to skyrocket and Oregon continues to fail to provide access to a college education, especially for low-income students. As graduating more college-educated students becomes increasingly important to our state’s economy, now is the time to reinvest in postsecondary education.”
“What’s even scarier about Oregon’s failing grade in affordability,” continued Driver, “is that while students are paying more and more for a college education, we’re getting less and less from our under-funded institutions. This is why students are banning together with OUS, community colleges, and other interested parties to ask the legislature to make a substantial investment in our institutions above what they received this biennium.”
Also of note was that Oregon had one of the steepest declines in the nation in chance of attending college by age 19. This finding underscores the need for state funding for a mentoring program like ASPIRE (Access to Student assistance Programs In Reach of Everyone) that provides high school students with the tools to access postsecondary education, such as information about financial aid and application processes.
“When low-income families have to spend 83 percent of their income on a college education for one child,” said Driver, “we need to make sure that low-income high school students are getting the information they need about financial aid so that a college degree doesn’t seem to them like a pipe dream.”
A copy of the 2006 Measuring Up Report can be found at: http://measuringup.highereducation.org/
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