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EWA 2012 Higher Ed Seminar

Degrees vs. Debt: Making College More Affordable

Nov. 2-3

Indianapolis, Indiana

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Friday, November 2, 2012

Noon to 12:45 p.m.  Lunch 

12:45 to 1:30 p.m.  Welcome

  • Chancellor Charles Bantz, IUPUI
  • Jamie Merisotis, Lumina Foundation
  • Patricia Rogan, Indiana University School of Education, Indianapolis

1:30 to 2:30 p.m.  Defining ‘Affordability’

When students, policymakers, and administrators advocate for making college more affordable, what exactly do they mean? Affordable for students? Their families? With or without loans? For universities? Taxpayers? Sandy Baum of the College Board/Institute for Higher Education Policy guides us through the discussion.

2:30 to 3:45 p.m.  Dealing with Student Loan Debt: The Problems

Student loans have become a focal point in the national debate over college affordability. This session examines the impact that loan debt has on students, both while they are pursuing their degrees and after they have graduated.

  • Stephen Burd, New America Foundation (moderator)
  • Vic Borden, Indiana University School of Education
  • Chris LoCascio, Fix UC
  • Vasti Torres, Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research

3:45 to 4 p.m.  Break

4 to 5 p.m.  Dealing with Student Loan Debt: The Solutions

Are there alternatives that can either prevent students from accumulating loan debt while they are in school or assist them in repaying their debt after they have earned a degree? In this session, we examine the pros and cons of options such as income-based repayment and student loan bankruptcy reform.

  • Kim Clark, Money (moderator)
  • Lauren Asher, The Institute for College Access and Success
  • Rohit Chopra, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
  • Nicholas Hillman, University of Utah
  • Lynn O’Shaughnessy, The College Solution

5 to 6 p.m.  Making Sense of Higher Education Engagement, Outcomes & Assessment

The latest on what we know about how students learn best, what institutions should be looking for, and how they determine if it’s happening.  

  • Kenneth Terrell, Education Writers Association (moderator)
  • George Kuh (NILOA) and Robert Gonyea (NSSE)
  • Trudy Banta and Gary Pike, IUPUI

6 to 7:15 p.m.  Dinner Speaker: 10 Higher Education Stories You Should Be Covering This Year

From the impact of the November elections on higher education to the U.S. Supreme Court’s deliberations on affirmative action in admissions, Inside Higher Ed co-founder and Editor Scott Jaschik offers his ideas on the topics in postsecondary education that journalists should be tracking.

  • Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed

7:30 to 8:30 p.m.  Reception

Saturday, November 3, 2012

8 to 9 a.m.  Breakfast

9 to 10:30 a.m.  Who’s Subsidizing Whom and Other Secrets of Tuition Pricing

When students pay different amounts to take the same courses, does one student’s tuition go toward another’s education? We take close look at this debate as part of a discussion of the factors that college and university administrators consider when they determine tuition prices.

  • Jon Marcus, Hechinger Report (moderator)
  • Steve Hurlburt, Delta Cost Project
  • Paul Lingenfelter, State Higher Education Executive Officers
  • Richard Vedder, Ohio University/Center for College Affordability and Productivity

10:30 to 10:45 a.m.  Break

10:45 to Noon Building Better Stories: Covering College Affordability

In this intensive workshop session, reporters will have the opportunity to exchange advice and ideas about the most effective techniques for covering the rising costs of postsecondary education under the guidance of leading journalists.

Noon to 1 p.m.  Lunch Speaker

Generation on a Tightrope: A Portrait of Today’s College Student

Prominent education researcher Arthur Levine of The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation discusses his new studies on how the economic crisis and rising college costs have led to increases in students’ dropping out, living at home, working more hours and taking fewer classes.

1:15 to 2:30 p.m Different Ways to a Degree

In recent years, various options have emerged to trim the costs of earning a degree. In this session, we will examine whether options such as three-year degree programs and online education can make higher education more affordable.

  • Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed (moderator)
  • Kris Clerkin, Southern New Hampshire University
  • David Daniels, Pearson
  • Tom Harnisch, American Association of State Colleges & Universities
  • Burck Smith, StraighterLine
  • Tom Snyder, Ivy Tech Community College

2:30 to 2:45 p.m.  Break

2:45 to 4 p.m.  Turning the Page on Textbooks: More Affordable Options

Plummeting prices for e-readers and tablet computers mean big changes for the textbook industry, as more students and professors clamor for digital versions of traditional paper editions. What does this shift in the publishing world mean for college costs, and how are universities getting e-textbooks into the hands of students?

  • Jeff Young, The Chronicle of Higher Education (moderator)
  • Nicole Allen, U.S. PIRG
  • Bruce Hildebrand, Association of American Publishers
  • Mickey Levitan, Courseload