Released just prior to news that universities across the nation will raise their tuition costs yet again, this time by an average of 5.9 percent, a new nationwide survey says that 42 percent of Americans think it is "extremely important" that the next president address the need to control college costs. Of those polled, 32 percent believe Barack Obama is the presidential candidate most likely to enact policies that would help families pay for college education in the future. Hillary Clinton came in second with 19 percent of votes, and John McCain rounded out the poll with 10 percent.
But despite the survey's findings that Obama led over his Democratic rival with 13 points, voters would be hard-pressed to find many differences between the two candidates' platforms for higher education. Both say they want to eliminate the FAFSA, introduce a higher tax credit for those attending college, and increase the federal Pell Grant for lower-income students. McCain has yet to detail his plan for higher education, but says on his Web site that he will "pursue reforms that address the underlying cultural problems in our education system."
John Wheatley, president of the College Democrats and A&S '08, says the unbalanced favor for Obama in the poll may rest not his platform at all, but rather on how the public perceives him as an agent for change.
"A lot of times, Hillary is associated with the past, while Barack is seen as someone new and closer to the college-aged population. In the past, we haven't had great programs to help students in college, so Hillary is more associated with the status quo than Barack, whether that's fair or not," Wheatley said.
The Chronicle of Higher Education survey, whose 984 participants answered questions over a 12-day period in late February and early March, also revealed that with respect to concerns about higher education, cost was the most important issue, followed by quality of an education and admission for low-income students to top-rated colleges.
2008 Woodie Awards
