Blogs:

The Department of Education in our country is constantly taking efforts to help America lead the world once again in higher education. In order to achieve this goal, it has invited higher education community to share the best practices that can help students to complete their higher education. It has amassed some of the most important researchers in the country to develop a toolkit to help colleges and universities to follow the best practices.

Arne Duncan, The Department of Education secretary said that their task is to come up with innovative ideas and measure practices that are more successful and to ensure that all students complete their higher education successfully, no matter what their family income, race and background are.

Martha Kanter, under secretary of education department stated that the professors, deans and leaders in education field who have the best knowledge about keeping students in school will know the answer for improving the quality of higher education and increasing the number of students completing higher education. She added that their aim is to highlight strategies that could have a great impact on the success of the students, without increasing their financial burden.

The Education Department has published a notice in the federal Register requesting higher education community to share information about effective practices and activities that have proved to improve the rates of postsecondary progress. This call for information is part of our President’s initiative to raise the number of Americans earning college degrees.

His aim is to make our country lead once again in college graduates by 2020. He stated that increasing the number of students completing graduation is vital to rebuild our economy. He stressed on the importance of keeping college affordable and accessible to all Americans, so that we can reach this goal by 2020. Obama highlighted many steps to be taken to ensure the students are not saddled by student loan debt in their attempt to complete higher education.

President Obama has called for the states to regain its position as the global leader in college completion. Joe Biden, vice president stated despite its high cost, higher education continues to be valuable. In his recent visit (January 2012) to a suburban high school in Ohio, Biden specified that the Obama administration observed that more than two thirds of college students in Ohio take out loans to pay for tuition and they graduate with the debt of more than $27,000.

Biden stressed that college education is crucial to achieve the American dreams, which should be receded. Arne Duncan who accompanied vice president in his visit said that higher education has never been more important than now, even though it has been more expensive. Both Biden and Duncan reiterated that the Obama administration is taking continuous efforts to make college more affordable.

Many young people think that a college degree is out of their reach. Duncan urged youngsters to do anything to complete their higher education.