Expanded Access to College and the 2013 Budget

President Obama laid out a blueprint in his State of the Union address for an economy that’s built to last – an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values.  The President released a budget that illustrates how we put that blueprint to work.  

Yesterday in his message to Congress, the President explained that we are in a make-or-break moment for the middle class, and for all those who are fighting to get there. The Budget targets scarce federal resources to the areas critical to growing the economy and restoring middle-class security: education and skills for American workers, innovation and manufacturing, clean energy, and infrastructure. It is built around the idea that our country does best when everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules.

The Administration firmly believes that education cannot be a luxury – it is an economic imperative that every family in America should be able to afford. To support this commitment, the 2013 Budget will:

• Expand Access to College Through Pell Grants
• Reform Federal Campus-Based Aid Programs
• Create a Race to the Top: College Affordability and Completion
• Launch a First in the World competition to model innovation and quality on college campus
• Help Students and Their Families Pay for College
• Suspend an Increase in Student Loan Interest Rates
• Bring Competition to and Encourage New Approaches for Job Training
• Improve Access to Higher Education for Students from Minority Backgrounds
• Invest in Community Colleges
• Expand Opportunities for Students in Math, Science, and Engineering
• Recruit and Prepare Talented Individuals as Effective Teachers

Read more about how the President’s 2013 budget will help ensure expanded access to college: HERE.