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AFL-CIO supports Opportunity for All |
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Written by kcf
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Friday, 10 August 2007 |
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The AFL-CIO just issued a policy statement called "Opportunity for All" calling for increased access to higher education. In a press release issued on Tuesday, the Executive Council declared its plans to restore the state support needed to make America's higher education system "the best and most accessible in the world" once again.
The statement makes "restoring state support for higher education and keeping tuition down a significant legislative priority" for the union because "such support will include advocacy for policies that provide students from working families with the educational support they need to complete their education."
The statement noted that while public funding for education has gone down, tuition has gone up and household income has remained more or less the same over the past 10 years. Working families are finding it more difficult to send their children to college as they face increased loan debts and decreased financial aid. "Higher education is not serving as the great engine of upward mobility it ought to be" as high-achieving, low-income students are being priced out of bachelor's degrees
The decrease in state funding has also led to the deterioration of full-time faculty and an increased reliance on part-time and adjunct faculty in colleges and universities across America. These non-tenured instructors often work for less than $200 a week and receive few of the health and employment benefits granted to their full-time colleagues.
These changes to the accessibility of higher education have meant that fewer Americans have the earning capability, quality of life and decreased chances of unemployment associated with degree-holders. The deterioration of higher education has also made it more difficult for America to remain competitive in the high-demand global marketplace which requires highly skilled and knowledgeable workers.
It's refreshing to see an interest in the real challenges facing higher education, and we have great hopes for good things to come!
Tags:
college |
legislation |
real issues |
student loans |
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