college affordability

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker and the state's higher education leaders on Thursday announced a new college affordability plan designed to increase graduation rates by lowering tuition and fees for students who transfer from community college to a state university.

On Wednesday, the Senate voted against a bill filed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., that would allow college graduates to refinance their outstanding student loans at lower interest rates. 

Despite the public outcry about mounting student loan debt, Republican leaders widely dismissed the measure as a progressive political stunt during an election year because it called for a new tax on millionaires and billionaires to cover the cost. 

Facing stagnant enrollment and increasingly price-conscious consumers, already cash-strapped universities will continue to see their revenues fail to keep up with inflation, the bond-rating agency Moody’s Investment Service says.

U.S. student loan debt has reached $1.2 trillion and it continues to climb, according to the latest figures from the Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, lawmakers have begun rewriting higher education legislation to try to control college costs.

It's been two weeks since President Obama proposed his sweeping plan to make college more affordable. Now, low-income students and their advocates are urging Congress to support it.

The president wants to create a college rating system that ties federal financial aid to colleges' performance outcomes, including their ability to increase access for nontraditional students.

Reactions to Obama's plan to rank colleges have been mixed.