US: New president raises hopes in higher education

The inauguration of America's new president on Tuesday has created widespread hope on campuses across the nation that Barack Obama will act quickly to tackle the deepening recession. Meantime, colleges and universities have been forced to act to boost their student-aid programmes to help middle-income families caught unexpectedly in the grim economic downturn.

For many students, the biggest concern is how they will manage to keep studying given the impact of the credit crisis on the student loan market and the fact many banks stopped offering federal student loans last year. With rising unemployment, more families began applying for federal aid and a survey in October found that an increasing number of families expected to apply for student loans.

University administrators became increasingly worried that, as family finances worsened, their institutions would not have enough aid money to support them, especially as their own endowment returns were falling, state government had begun making cuts and fund-raising was becoming more difficult.

The situation was made worse because the credit crisis made it harder for students and their parents to borrow, even as their needs grew and their savings accounts dwindled. Students who had taken out loans on their own were asking parents or other relatives and friends to help cover tuition costs.

How many students will be forced to drop out of university and join the growing unemployment statistics is unknown but a number of colleges have found the means to boost spending on providing aid to students.

Among them is Hampshire College in Massachusetts which announced an additional US$400,000 this academic year, on top of a $21 million financial aid budget the college had already established for grants and scholarships to new and returning students.

Karen Parker, director of admissions, said the college had eliminated the application fee for all students applying for the fall 2009 entering class, and would reimburse any application fees that had already been submitted.

"Students typically apply to several colleges to ensure that they are admitted to and receive sufficient financial assistance to attend a college with the kind of educational programmes and environment they seek," Parker said. "The cost of multiple application fees causes some to limit their applications [and] it is important that we are accessible to all students who wish to apply to Hampshire"

In Virginia, the Washington and Lee University is offering increased financial aid for the second year following an $85 million gift. The money has been used to create a merit-based scholarship scheme and extend the scope of the university's need-based financial aid.

In Ohio, a $10 million gift from an anonymous donor announced last November will assist University of Dayton students. "It could not have come at a better time," said Kathy Harmon, director of financial aid. "The way the gift is structured, we may assist entering first year students, as well as returning students whose families have been caught in these difficult economic times."

Also in Ohio, Oberlin College says its total aid to students should amount to as much as $44 million in 2008-2009 and up to $46 million the following 12 months. Financial aid director Rob Reddy said Oberlin had a long history of helping students gain access to the college and for decades Oberlin had acknowledged that one impediment to access was cost.

"Thus the strong and large commitment to financial aid in general and need-based grants in particular, with more than 90% of Oberlin grant-scholarship money going to meet student need," Reddy said.

* To mark the inauguration of Barack Obama as president, American college and universities are organising campus screening parties, special lectures and virtual connections to students and alumni in Washington who will provide live feedback. Some schools are also linking their celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day (commemorated each year on the third Monday in January) with the Obama inauguration.

In Vermont, St Michael's College is combining its celebration of Martin Luther King Jr Day with the inauguration. The week's events culminate on Wednesday with a community viewing of Obama becoming president on a 15-foot TV screen.

At the University of Virginia, classes will be suspended between 11am and 2pm while video coverage will continue from 10am to 5pm in six library facilities. A Scholars' Lab will take a social networking approach with Twitter feeds and Flickr photos, along with a geographic "mash-up" showing where comments are originating.

"The coming together of a nation at the same time every four years for presidential inaugurations as dictated by the constitution for noon on January 20 is an educational moment that binds us as a nation and a people," said Arthur Garson Jr, executive vice president and provost.

At the University of Washington, one residence hall will have a room for 300 visitors to view the inauguration. The university hopes to attract not just Washington citizens but a significant number of international students, as the event is being co-sponsored by the Foundation for International Understanding Through Students.