[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 129, 114th Congress, 1st Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
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

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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 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 in-
terest 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.
BARACK OBAMA