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Opinion: Sailing Into A For-Profit Sun

CCC — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:24:30 -0600

Mitt Romney's otherwise extensive web site has no obvious link to his positions on education. That makes it all the more curious why he has been plugging for-profit colleges such as Full Sail University near Orlando, Florida, which trains students in film and entertainment, and the ubiquitous University of Phoenix, which claims to have a campus “within 10 miles of 87 million Americans.’’

Romney claims that Full Sail officials “hold down the cost’’ of education “by recognizing they’re competing.’’ He said, “I look at places like University of Phoenix and others, I think you’re going to find students saying you know what? That’s not a bad deal.’’

Cal Grant Participation Connected to Default Rates

CCC — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:20:00 -0600

A little-known California law has dealt a blow to nearly half of the for-profit college campuses in the state, barring them from offering students a coveted Cal Grant this year.

The law cracks down for the first time on schools with high student loan default rates, meaning graduates aren't paying back the money they owe even three years after leaving school.

"It's a sign that the institution did not prepare them for a job so they could repay their loan," said Robert Shireman, who, as deputy undersecretary of education in the Obama administration, oversaw reforms in student lending.

Now, California is tying participation in the Cal Grant program to colleges' three-year student loan default rates.

Phoenix Growth in Health & Education Jobs Among Fastest in Nation

CCC — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:15:43 -0600

The Phoenix metro area has posted the nation’s second-highest rate of job growth in the private education and health services sector since the end of the recession, according to a new report.

Phoenix gained 34,200 jobs in those fields, according to an interactive report from the Urban Institute, which said the 14.9 percent growth from mid-2009 to November was second only to the New Orleans’ metro area job growth in that sector.