[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 161 (Monday, December 15, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2411-E2413]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        FORUM ON THE REAUTHORIZATION OF THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DAVID E. PRICE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 13, 1997

  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, on September 22, I convened 
a forum on the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. This 
legislation, which would renew authority for most Federal higher 
education programs, will be considered during the next session of the 
105th Congress. I invited students, college presidents, financial aid 
administrators, and business leaders from the Research Triangle area of 
North Carolina to come together at the Museum of History in Raleigh to 
discuss the future of student and institutional aid, support services 
for disadvantaged students, international programs, university-based 
research, and training for the work force. The participants were 
divided into four panels: ``The Higher Education Act: Student 
Perspectives,'' ``Priorities for the Higher Education Act.'' ``The 
Financial Aid Challenge,'' and ``Higher Education, the Economy and the 
Global Marketplace.'' Together, they outlined a compelling agenda for 
education policy and demonstrated the contribution our State is 
prepared to make to this debate.
  I was joined on the moderating panel by David Longanecker, Assistant 
Secretary for Post-Secondary Education at the U.S. Department of 
Education, Senator Howard Lee, chairman of both the authorizing and 
appropriating committees for higher education in the North Carolina 
Senate, and Senator Wib Gulley, a member of the Higher Education 
Committee in the North Carolina Senate. Today, I want to summarize who 
the participants were and what they had to say.


             The Higher Education Act: Student Perspectives

  Five students from Triangle schools gave us the benefit of their 
perspectives on student aid. Mohan Nathan, student body president at 
the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, emphasized four 
significant areas of concern for students: First, the grant-loan 
imbalance; second, the importance of the State Student Incentive Grant 
Program in leveraging non-Federal funds; third, the rising cost of 
graduate school and subsequent student debt; and fourth, how loan 
indebtedness may affect the career choices students make. Linda 
Hawkins, a student at Meredith College, spoke to the special needs of 
nontraditional students and supported more evening and weekend programs 
that would allow flexibility in family and employment schedules. 
Kendrick Coble of Shaw University recounted the difficulty of piecing 
together a financial aid package and called for a modification in the 
methodology used to determine financial aid eligibility so that those 
who are working to support themselves are not penalized. Heather 
Thompson, a student at Durham Technical Community College and single 
mother of two children, testified in very personal and moving terms to 
the importance of the Single Parent Program--a program offered at 
Durham Tech which pays for her children's day care--in attracting more 
single parents back to school. And Terry Steckowich, a transfer student 
at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, discussed the 
difficulty in transferring credits from a quarter-based institution--in 
his case, Durham Technical Community College--to a semester based 
system.


                Priorities for the Higher Education Act

  Leaders from five higher education institutions in the Triangle 
comprised the second panel. They offered their views on challenges at 
their institutions and how those challenges should frame the priorities 
in the renewal of the Higher Education Act. President Molly Broad of 
the University of North Carolina system called for modification of the 
College Work Study Program to cover travel and training expenses for 
students who are participating in cooperative education. She also 
described the need to develop telecommunications infrastructure and 
support through expanded partnerships among colleges, primary and 
secondary schools. President Broad also testified to the importance of 
policy initiatives that were included as a portion of the Taxpayer 
Relief Act. She specifically referenced the importance of two items 
that I and other Members have been working on for 10 years which were 
included in the education tax relief section of the bill--penalty-free 
withdrawals from individual retirement accounts and the deductibility 
of interest on student loans. President Bernard Franklin of St. 
Augustine's college emphasized the accessibility and cost of a college 
education, citing the grant-loan imbalance and advocating an increase 
in Pell Grant levels. Second, he called for greater support of the 
technological infrastructure for colleges serving a large number of 
minority students. Third, Dr. Franklin addressed the need for increased 
funding and flexibility so that money in the Institutional Aid portion 
of the bill can be used to build endowments at historically black 
institutions. Chancellor Julius Chambers of North Carolina Central 
University urged more funding to help develop graduate programs at 
historically black colleges and universities. He raised questions about 
the restrictive matching fund component of the law and stressed the 
difficulty graduate programs have in becoming eligible for Federal 
funds. He also discussed the need for better outreach to low-income 
families concerning the Federal funds available for education. 
Chancellor Chambers went on to argue that the present method for 
determining the amount of money married students and students with 
children may obtain for loans and other aid is not sufficient. He 
argued in favor of increased Federal student loan funding to help 
single parents cover the expenses necessary to obtain a degree. 
President Bruce Howell of Wake Technical Community College, with whom I 
worked a few years ago as we crafted the Advanced Technological 
Education Program at the National Science Foundation, testified to the 
value of the grants his and other community colleges across the country 
have received to upgrade curricula and teaching

[[Page E2412]]

methods. He called for more resources, including computers, and 
increased access to the classroom for the economically disadvantaged, 
students with disabilities, single parent students, and full-time 
workers. Because 78 percent of students at Wake Tech work, Dr. Howell 
advocated the need for classes round the clock and on weekends. He also 
spoke on the necessity to reach out to workers and older people to make 
education accessible at all stages of life. The last panelist to 
present testimony was President Nan Keohane of Duke University. Dr. 
Keohane echoed the statement of Chancellor Chambers in addressing the 
lack of knowledge about the availability of student aid. She detailed a 
number of areas where changes to the Higher Education Act would ``play 
what you might call a perfecting role.'' These refinements include a 
sharper focus on needy and moderate income students, strengthening 
campus-based programs that reduce borrowing, lowering the cost of 
borrowing to students, allowing institutions with low-loan default 
rates greater flexibility in the loan packages they may offer, and 
developing incentives for families to save for college. I believe this 
last point is particularly important and hope the reauthorization will 
adjust the formulas to ensure those that have saved are not penalized 
while ensuring that those with fewer resources are still eligible for 
aid. Finally, Dr. Keohane called for adequate support of the 
International Education and Foreign Language Programs and for 
rethinking of Federal student aid for participants in those programs.


                      The Financial Aid Challenge

  Financial aid administrators, in both State government and at 
Triangle educational institutions, discussed the current status of the 
Federal Financial Aid Program and the challenges they face in 
administering the program. Steven Brooks, executive director of the 
North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority, discussed the 
difficulty aid administrators have in fulfilling their role as student 
advocates. Mr. Brooks indicated that Federal regulations and decreased 
flexibility have made his role as an advocate more difficult. Like Drs. 
Chambers and Keohane, he argued that a better partnership among 
administrators at the Federal, State, and institutional level would 
help make financial aid information more available to students. He also 
addressed the grant-loan imbalance and, like other participants, called 
for an increase in Pell grant funding. Finally, Mr. Brooks asked that 
the Congress continue to find ways to support the savings efforts of 
middle-class families. ``Those who can afford to save for higher 
education, must be encouraged to do so, and this encouragement must 
come without cost to those who cannot afford to save.'' Carolyn 
Braxton, financial aid director at Wake Technical Community College, 
discussed the need for options other than loans, so students do not 
have large debt loans upon graduation. She also expressed the need for 
more child care, especially for the nontraditional student. And like 
Mr. Brooks, Ms. Braxton would like more focus on low-income families, 
not just aid for the middle class. She concluded by questioning the 
role of financial aid administrators in relation to Federal 
requirements: ``Financial aid professionals are required to be 
gatekeepers for Federal, State, and local dollars at our colleges, meet 
the needs of our students and meet regulatory requirements in 
administering these dollars. Requirements for verifying selective 
service registration and citizenship are not in sync with our mission 
to provide funding resources to enable all students to obtain a higher 
education.'' Julia Rice Mallette, financial aid director at North 
Carolina State University, brought several issues to the table. She 
underscored the need to understand the costs of college beyond tuition: 
books, room and board, food and transportation. She, too, expressed 
concern about the grant-loan imbalance and called for increased funding 
for the Pell Grant Program. At the same time, Ms. Mallette called for 
an increase in loan limits, especially for graduate and professional 
students, as well as a reduction of elimination of the loan originating 
fee and insurance premium paid up front. And, finally, Mr. Mallette 
reiterated the need to clarify and promote financial aid opportunities 
for students enrolled in distance education programs. Wanda White, 
financial aid director at St. Augustine's College, discussed the 
importace of programs such as the recently enacted Hope Scholarship, 
deductibility of student loan interest, and increases in the Pell Grant 
and the Work Study Program, since as many as 90 percent of students at 
historically black colleges and universities receive some sort of 
financial aid. She also advocated the increased funding to expand the 
use of technology at institutions that serve minorities and spoke for 
increased funding for the State Student Incentive Grant Program.


        Higher Education, the Economy and the Global Marketplace

  Business and education leaders came together in our final panel to 
discuss the implications of higher education policy decisions for local 
and global economies. Chancellor Larry Montieith of North Carolina 
State University highlighted the growing partnership between industry 
and university research and stressed the importance of these 
partnerships for future industrial development. This is a subject he is 
well acquainted with because of his leadership in creating the new 
Centennial Campus at NCSU, a research and advanced technology community 
where university, industry, and government partners interact in 
multidisciplinary programs directed toward the solution of contemporary 
problems. It serves as a model for how productive partnerships between 
industry and universities should be formed for the 21st century. 
Chancellor Monteith expressed his concern that the Higher Education Act 
not forget research and research institutions: ``If the infrastructure 
will not support leading-edge research, then we will not generate the 
technologies that are needed.'' President Phail Wynn of Durham 
Technical Community College testified that 80 percent of the goods 
produced in this country are actively competing with foreign-made 
goods, and he argued that ``the real measure of success between these 
competing knowledge-intensive economies will be found in the quality of 
their human resources.'' Postsecondary schooling must address the needs 
of the workplace, Dr. Wynn stated, especially in terms of being able to 
adapt quickly to changing circumstances. Steven Hitchner, director of 
ECPI Technical Institute, a proprietary school which focuses on 
teaching computer skills, made two important points. The first was the 
need for an increased numbers of technologically literate workers. He 
testified that ``increasingly, employers are requiring specialized 
training and continuing education as system advances are made and new 
technology is introduced.'' The second was the necessity to give 
proprietary school students access to Federal student assistance 
programs. To ensure that schools such as ECPI are able to produce the 
skilled work force we need quickly, Mr. Hitchner believes proprietary 
schools must be included in the discussions about reforming the Higher 
Education Act. He also expressed his appreciation that the recently 
enacted Taxpayer Relief Act included proprietary schools in the HOPE 
Scholarship Program and in the Education Affordability Act provisions 
concerning deductible interest for student loans and penalty-free 
withdrawals from IRA's. Robert Ingram, President and CEO of Glaxo-
Wellcome Incorp., testified from two perspectives: global employer and 
corporate citizen. As an employer, he stressed the need for ``graduates 
to help us fulfill our mission of discovering, developing and 
delivering better medicines to meet the unmet answers in health.'' As a 
corporate citizen who believes in higher education, Mr. Ingram 
highlighted Glaxo's commitment to research universities and his 
company's emphasis on research partnerships. He testified that these 
partnerships, which are extensive at Triangle institutions, are 
essential to producing the most qualified and competitive students. He 
further discussed the need for advanced technical training for the work 
force to meet the evolving needs of an increasingly complex global 
business economy. Sandra Babb, advisor on work force preparedness to 
the Governor of North Carolina, argued persuasively for meeting the 
requirements of the digital information economy. Ms. Babb testified 
that educators and students must look to see where business is moving 
in terms of technology and creativity and must focus on the skills 
necessary to accomplish those goals. She emphasized that education is 
not static and that the Higher Education Act needs to realize this 
fundamental change in how we educate our citizens. She stated 
``learning is a lifelong challenge because in the new economy, you've 
got to reinvent your knowledge base throughout your life.'' The last 
witness was William Friday, president-emeritus of the University of 
North Carolina system. Mr. Friday also chaired the National Humanities 
Center Steering Committee on the Future of the Fulbright Educational 
Exchange Program. That committee recently produced an excellent report 
entitled ``Fulbright at Fifty,'' which makes the case for the 
continuation and enhancement of the Fulbright scholars program. Mr. 
Friday testified ``if we do not devise the means to utilize the 
strength of these higher education institutions in helping one culture 
to understand another, one culture to get along with another, one 
culture to be unafraid of another, then all that you've heard here will 
not avail.'' He also paraphrased Senator Fulbright when he said 
``knowledge will not produce peace unless there is understanding.'' And 
to reach that understanding, Mr. Friday passionately advocated the 
restoration of Fulbright funding to $125 million. Unfortunately, the 
recently enacted Commerce, Justice, State, and Judiciary Appropriations 
bill funded the Fulbright program at a much lower level, $94.236 
million.

  After this full day of presentations and responses to questions posed 
by Secretary Longanecker, Senators Lee and Gulley, and

[[Page E2413]]

myself, I believe we all have a better understanding of the enormity of 
the challenge of reauthorizing the Higher Education Act and of the 
major issues that must be addressed. The hearing record will be made 
available to our colleagues on the Education and Workforce Committee, 
and I will be eager to work with them to ensure that these excellent 
ideas from the Research Triangle area of North Carolina are included in 
the Higher Education Act as reauthorization moves forward next session.

                          ____________________