[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 16604-16605]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                   CONGRATULATING CSU--GLOBAL CAMPUS

 Mr. BENNET. Mr. President, in an increasingly global economy, 
we must find ways to promote innovation, increase college access, and 
make college affordable so that our students can remain competitive. In 
light of today's Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 
Committee hearing which focused on these important topics, I want to 
recognize Colorado's own Colorado State University--Global Campus for 
their impressive work in this area. This year marks CSU--Global Campus' 
5-year anniversary, and I would also like to congratulate them on 
reaching that milestone.
  CSU--Global Campus, and its president, Dr. Becky Takeda-Tinker, have 
demonstrated a remarkable commitment to ensuring a quality education at 
an affordable price. As the first and only 100 percent online, fully 
accredited public, nonprofit institution in America, students enrolling 
at CSU--Global today will not see any tuition increases as long as they 
take at least one class per year, even if tuition rates increase five 
years down the road. CSU--Global does this because it wants students 
entering today to be able to plan their education and anticipate the 
full cost of graduation.
  CSU--Global Campus has been at the forefront of new innovative 
approaches to learning, including offering competency-based courses. 
Students have access to CSU--Global's full course content online for 
free and can receive academic credit for passing an exam with a score 
of 70 percent or better. A 3-credit exam costs $250 and a 1-credit 
costs $150; the fee covers 2 exam attempts in 12 months. There is no 
additional fee for students to access the materials, faculty, and 
resources during their study period leading up to the exam. Many of 
these resources are innovations themselves and include a 24-7 online 
tutoring service, 24-7 tech support, and a virtual library.
  Its students' progress are carefully tracked electronically and 
student support is a priority. Students partner with faculty or receive 
other student support if it seems they have struggled in a certain 
class. Students at CSU--Global are given the flexibility needed to 
accommodate the many demands on their time, but are still counseled 
through to completion.
  Thirty-four percent of CSU--Global's students are first-generation 
college students and 23 percent are from the underserved population. 
Finally, at a time when our country continues to recover financially, 
95 percent of CSU--Global graduates are working for pay as of February 
2013.
  As the cost of college continues to rise, CSU-Global Campus is an 
innovative alternative. After repaying its $12

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million start-up loan a year ahead of schedule in 2012, it now operates 
a sustainable model without future appropriations from the State of 
Colorado.
  Mr. President, in April 2013, CSU--Global ranked seventh in U.S. News 
& World Report's ranking of the Best Online Bachelor's Programs. On the 
occasion of its fifth anniversary, I congratulate CSU--Global on its 
tremendous achievements.

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