Pacific Progressive

Neoliberalism and the For-Profit, Predatory Educational Industry: You Can't Regulate a Criminal Enterprise

 

by: Danny Weil, t r u t h o u t | Report

 

You might have been following Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and his department's attempts to reign in the for-profit universities and colleges for their criminal activities. Perhaps you recognize some of these for-profit universities and colleges, for they are well known due to their marketing and are heavily traded on the stock market - DeVry(ticker: DV), Grand Canyon Education (LOPE), as Apollo Group (APOL), ITT Educational Services (ESI), Kaplan (WOP) andStrayer Education (STRA). There are literally thousands of these schools in existence and most are online schools with office fronts that act as administration centers for the whole for-profit syndicate.

The Department of Education (DOE), after a 2010 Government Accounting Office (GAO) sting operation that unveiled the vile tactics of 15 of these predatory institutions, says it wants to adopt new regulations that would rein in the for-profit educational industry. Yet, this is not the first time the "industry" has been caught with its pants down and its fists full of dirty money. Earlier, in 2009, another GAO investigation was launched and similar acts of criminality were found (United States Government Accountability Office, Proprietary Schools: Stronger Department of Education Oversight needed to help ensure only eligible students receive financial aid, August 2009,).

Under Title IV of the Higher Education Act, any school can receive federal taxpayer funds in the form of student aid if it offers courses of study such as certificates, associate degrees, bachelor degrees, graduate degrees or professional degree programs. Proprietary schools offer a small percentage of bachelor degrees, but a substantial percentage of certificate degrees. Overall, the proprietary sector receives the smallest percentage of Title IV funds, 19 percent, as compared with the public and nonprofit, which is 48 percent and 33 percent, respectively. Although the majority of enrollees in these colleges are in four-year programs, the two-year proprietary schools account for a significant percentage of the proprietary customer base.

Angry Fullerton College Students Protest Education Cuts Endangering Their Futures

 Angry, disappointed, and anxious Fullerton College students filled the four corners of Lemon and Chapman in Fullerton on March 4, 2010, as part of the Day of Action for public education.   Drivers passing thru the intersection honked their support. Semis driving down Chapman sounded their air horns for the students crowded on the corners.  Students chanted, "Our Choice, Our Future".  Fullerton College band set up their chairs and music stands on the grass and played "Tom Sawyer" by Rush, among others. 

 

California Education - We Cannot Afford to Dither

by Michael Matsuda

President, Board of Trustees for the North Orange County Community College District

The father of modern public education, John Dewey once said, “Luck, bad if not good, will always be with us. But it has a way of favoring the intelligent and showing its back to the stupid.” When it comes to the decisions we’ve made about public education, it is doubtful that luck will be on our side. California has slipped to 47th in investing in k-12 education and now spends more on the prison system than on higher education, even though there is a strong correlation between illiteracy and incarceration. Thanks to our elected leaders who continue to posture to be “tough on crime,” California now ranks number one in the world in incarceration rates and per capita spending on prisons.

Consider this: adjusted for inflation, University of California tuition has gone up over 500% since 1980.  During the same period, expenditures on corrections have also gone up 500%.  As we spend ever more on warehousing prisoners, we're forced to make students pay ever more for their education.  The annual cost of incarcerating one inmate in prison is close to $40,000.  The cost per youth in California Youth Authority is $90,000 per year. Both have a 70% recidivism rate within three years.

Besides the recent highly publicized decision by the UC regents to raise tuition by 32%, budget cuts proposed last week will cause community colleges to turn away 262,845 current students if implemented, analysis released by the Community College League of California shows. The loss of a quarter of a million students is the equivalent of closing the University of California . The state’s rising unemployment rate and decisions by the California State University to limit enrollment will likely lead to even more students finding the doors to higher education closed.

Community College Emergency Stabilization Fund Act Now in House

The perfect storm has hit the nation's community colleges - higher enrollment caused by high unemployment requires more resources at a time when education funding is being cut.  Reps. John Larson (D-CT) and Ruben Hinojosa (D-TX) have introduced HR 4196, the Community College Emergency Stabilization Fund Act.  

Under the act, $700 million will be available in a one-time allocation designed for the states to use as grants to their community colleges.  Funds can be used for hiring faculty, staff and counselors or keeping the ones they currently have working with students and out of the unemployment line.  $50 million in competitive grants will also be available in a competitive grant program for career and technical colleges.

Community colleges are vital to the economy and play many roles.  For high school students wanting to go to four year schools, they are an affordable way to build transferable credits. For students seeking employment in technical areas or trades, they provide job training.  For laid off employees, they provide job training and a way to successfully re-enter the workforce.  

Reps. Larson and Hinojosa are looking for co-sponsors for the bill and want to have the bill become part of any jobs package put forth by Congress in the near term.  Contact your House member to ask them to sign on.  

Track the bill using THOMAS.

OCTA Looking to Eliminate Routes - Give OCTA Feedback on These Proposals

OCTA is looking to restructure bus service to fit the available budget. Staff has prepared several proposals for bus service reductions and have taken the presentations to public meetings to get input.  OCTA has also bought ads and put comment cards on buses to get feedback on proposals.  

If you use one of these buses, please tell OCTA what will happen if the bus is no longer available to you. These routes are targeted for possible elimination.  When you buy a bus pass, drop off a comment card or a letter.  Attend the public meeting on October 26 at 9 AM at OCTA headquarters in Orange. Fill out a comment card and drop it in the mail. But, please, for your sake, let OCTA know if these bus service cuts will impact you.  If your school is impacted, have your teachers, professors, principals and deans call.  If your business is impacted, have the managers and human resources department call OCTA to let them know this is a problem.

The routes listed for elimination are given below, along with the major landmarks along the route.  If implemented, the routes will be eliminated starting in March 2010.

Route 20 - La Habra to Yorba Linda via Imperial Highway - Yorba Linda Middle School, Yorba Linda Community Center, Downtown Yorba Linda, Brea Gateway Center, Brea Promenade, Brea Mall, Imperial Middle School, La Habra Marketplace

Route 21 - Fullerton to Huntington Beach via Valley View St/Bolsa Chica Rd - Buena Park High School, John F. Kennedy High School, Centerpointe, Cypress High School, Cypress College, Hilton D. Bell Intermediate School, Marina High School, Boeing, Huntington Beach Industrial Area, Sunset Beach

Coast Community College District Message on Budget Cuts

Note: There is a correction made in this post. A typographical error stated the cost of one unit as $256. The cost of one unit at a California community college is $26 starting fall 2009. The post is now corrected to show $26.  

This message is from Jim Moreno, President of the Board of Trustees of Coast Community College District. Coast Community College District includes Coastline Community College, Golden West College and Orange Coast College.  

A Message from the Board President

After a very long wait, the state legislature and Governor have passed a budget and we are now able to deal with the current year’s fiscal issues and start planning more effectively for 2010-11.  The Coast District represents approximately three percent of the state’s community college overall funding.  Based upon the initial estimates, the Coast Community College District for this fiscal year is facing over $5 million is cuts in the general apportionment and over $6 million in categorical program cuts.  These conservative estimates are based upon anticipated property taxes and state revenues and not on actual state income taxes and revenues, which may be much lower.

Killing Our Business Community - Community College Budget Cuts

Nothing kills business faster than not having enough skilled workers for jobs.  California needs people with college degrees and with advanced technical training that can go to work immediately.  California's community college system provides foundation for both of these.  Community colleges serve as cost-effective feeder schools for UC, CSU and private four year colleges.  Community colleges also train students for ever-more-technical jobs in auto repair, the medical field, computer systems and business.  Many paramedics and firefighters received part of the training at a California community college.

Under the new budget signed by Governor Schwarzenegger, community colleges lose over $680 million in funding from the amount originally improved in February 2009.  Yes, if you want to kill the business community in California, start at the roots, the community college system.

There are expectations that the federal government will backfill part of the money, reducing some of the damage. Part of this money will come from the stimulus program in the form of increased money for Pell grants.

The cuts to the system is expected to reduce enrollment by 250,000 students.  In 2008-09, 2,673,406 students attended classes in California community colleges.  It is expected that 10% of those students won't be in class next year.