[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 211 (Monday, November 2, 2015)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 67619-67620]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-28037]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 211 / Monday, November 2, 2015 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 67619]]


                Proclamation 9356 of October 28, 2015

                
National College Application Month, 2015

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Our Nation was built on the idea that no matter where 
                you come from or what you look like, you can make it if 
                you try. Expanding access to affordable higher 
                education is key to safeguarding this ideal. A college 
                degree is the surest ticket to the middle class, and 
                broadening paths to education so more people have the 
                chance to earn post-secondary degrees and credentials 
                is the best way to make sure all our people can 
                contribute to writing our country's next great 
                chapters. During National College Application Month, we 
                pledge our support for those across America who are 
                taking steps toward earning a degree, and we continue 
                our work to ensure all Americans can access the tools 
                and resources necessary to make informed decisions 
                about college.

                My Administration has made it a priority to equip 
                aspiring college students and their families with data 
                on college costs, value, and admissions so they can 
                make choices that are right for their futures and their 
                budgets. Earlier this year, we redesigned the 
                Department of Education's College Scorecard, which can 
                be found at CollegeScorecard.ed.gov, with input from 
                those who use it most--students, families, and 
                advisers. It can now be used to compare schools' 
                affordability, graduation rates, post-college salaries, 
                and employment outcomes for former students. We also 
                launched the Better Make Room campaign, which supports 
                First Lady Michelle Obama's Reach Higher initiative and 
                gives students a platform to share their goals, 
                progress, and stories to lift each other up and inspire 
                one another to continue pursuing an education. And 
                across our country, organizations are partnering with 
                government to ensure first-generation college students 
                and students in low-income communities have the 
                resources and support to go to school and tap into 
                their incredible potential.

                Our effort to expand access to higher education 
                includes making community college more affordable. 
                Community colleges are essential pathways to the middle 
                class for millions of people: They work for veterans 
                transitioning back into civilian life, families who 
                need flexible schedules due to work or childcare, and 
                people who are seeking to hone new skills and are not 
                able to go back to school for 4 years. That is why I 
                announced a plan earlier this year to make 2 years of 
                community college free for anyone willing to work for 
                it--because in the United States of America, a quality 
                education should not be a privilege that is reserved 
                for a few, but a right for everybody who strives for 
                it.

                Getting a higher education has never been more 
                important, but it has also never been more expensive, 
                and my Administration has been working to streamline 
                the process for obtaining Federal financial aid. Next 
                year, students and families will be able to apply for 
                aid earlier, beginning on October 1, and use tax data 
                from their most recent return rather than waiting to 
                finalize applications until the following year's tax 
                season. Additionally, we have made it easier to 
                complete the FAFSA--the standard form used when 
                applying for aid from the Federal Government--and we 
                have created a new tax credit of up to $2,500 for 
                working families to pay for things like textbooks and 
                tuition. To make loans more manageable for students

[[Page 67620]]

                and families, we increased Pell Grant funding, capped 
                loan repayments at 10 percent of a borrower's income, 
                and enacted a commonsense plan to keep interest rates 
                on student loans at reasonable levels. All together, 
                these actions could help hundreds of thousands of 
                students pay for college. For resources and more 
                information about the steps we are taking to expand 
                access to the opportunities a higher education 
                provides, visit www.WhiteHouse.gov/ReachHigher.

                At such a critical time in people's lives, we owe it to 
                them to make sure they have the necessary resources and 
                information to confidently make the important decisions 
                that come with applying to college. This month, let us 
                strive to expand access to quality higher education for 
                all people and to make real our Nation's promise of 
                opportunity. Together, we can once again secure our 
                status as the country with the highest proportion of 
                college graduates in the world, and we can forge a 
                future where dreams know no bounds.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim November 2015 as 
                National College Application Month. I call upon public 
                officials, educators, parents, students, and all 
                Americans to observe this month with appropriate 
                ceremonies, activities, and programs designed to 
                encourage students to make plans for and apply to 
                college.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-eighth day of October, in the year of our Lord 
                two thousand fifteen, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and fortieth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2015-28037
Filed 10-30-15; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F6-P