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One
thousand professors
from over 300 colleges in all 50 states released a statement declaring their preference for high-quality,
affordable textbooks, including open textbooks, over expensive commercial
textbooks.
Open
textbooks are high
quality open-access textbooks reviewed
and written by academics that can be used online at no cost and printed for a
small cost. Open textbooks are already used at some of the
nation’s most prestigious institutions, like Harvard, Caltech and Yale.
Textbooks cost students an average of $900 per year, which is a quarter of tuition
at an average four-year public university and nearly three-quarters of tuition
at a community college, according to the GAO. Research conducted by The Student PIRGs
identifies publisher tactics as the primary cause of escalating prices.
Bundling textbooks with unnecessary supplements forces students to purchase
items they do not need; unnecessary new editions undermine the used book
market; and withholding critical price information keeps faculty in the dark.
“As faculty members, our top priority is to choose the
textbook that is best for our students. We share concerns about
affordability, and face similar frustrations with publisher practices,” said
Sandra Schroeder, Chair of the American Federation of Teachers Higher Education
Program and Policy Council. “Open textbooks and other affordable options,
when appropriate for a course, are a win-win for everyone.”
Here are some examples of open textbooks:
Introduction
to Economic Analysis
A
First Course in Linear Algebra
Introduction to Physical
Oceanography
Check out a great front-page article in the Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette
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Arizona PIRG chapters released the "Campus Credit Card Trap" report, which outlined the unfair marketing practices of the credit industry. Students overwhelmingly support limits on campus credit card marketing, according to the results of the nationwide USPIRG survey of more than 1500 students at 40 colleges in 14 states.
The average student receives nearly 5 credit card offers a month and nearly two in three students reported that they had at least one credit card. Fifty-five percent of cardholding students said they used their card for day-to-day expenses. Reflecting escalating college costs, 55 percent said they charge their books and nearly one-quarter said they pay their tuition with a card. On average, freshmen had a balance of $1,301 and seniors had more than twice that, $2,623.
Credit cards are marketed to students using free gifts and introductory teaser rates. The use of aggressive marketing techniques obscures students' ability to be scrutinizing consumers when considering a credit card contract. Seventy six percent of students reported stopping at tables on campus to apply for credit cards, and nearly one-third were offered a free gift to sign up.
Check out the Washington Post article printed April 13th 2008
Learn more at: truthaboutcredit.org |
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On December 6th, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a 21st Century energy bill that will harness American ingenuity and put us on a path to cleaner, smarter new energy future for America.
This bill is a breakthrough on energy policy and sets the country firmly on a path to increasing clean energy, lowering energy demand, and reducing U.S.
dependence on oil.
We're now calling on the Senate to pass this bill quickly and for President Bush to sign it into law.
Highlights of the bill include:
Promote Clean Energy - by following the lead of half the states to establish a national renewable electricity standard, requiring utilities to produce 15% of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020. The bill also extends renewable energy production tax credits for four years and investment tax credits for 8 years.
A national renewable electricity standard will substantially reduce global warming pollution while sparking a clean energy boom across the U.S.
According to a recent analysis by Environment America, renewable energy development in states with RES policies is already boosting local economies by luring new manufacturing and other skilled jobs. It's projected that the standard would save consumers at least $13 billion and cut 126 million metric tons of global warming pollution per year by 2020 (equal to taking more than 20 million cars off the road).
Reduce U.S. Dependence on Oil - by increasing fuel economy standards for cars and light trucks to 35 mpg by 2020. This would be the first meaningful increase in fuel economy standards in more than 15 years. The provision replaces the current standards with an attribute-based system that gives the auto industry tremendous compliance flexibility by allowing for different mileage requirements per vehicle size. The standards in the Senate bill would save 1.2 million barrels of oil a day in 2020, save consumers $25 billion at the gas pumps, and substantially reduce global warming pollution.
With oil prices continuing to set new records above $80 a barrel, Americans want new standards and more efficient vehicles now.
Save Energy - by adopting strong energy-efficiency incentives and standards.
Both the House and Senate bills contain legislation that would help Americans save energy in their homes and businesses. These policies include appliance and lighting efficiency standards, tax incentives, and building codes.
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On September 7th, 2007, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed
the College Cost Reduction and Access Act by broad bipartisan votes of 79 to 12
and 292 to 97 respectively. The bill now goes to the President who has said he
will sign the legislation into law.
The College Cost Reduction and Access Act is the most meaningful higher
education reform in more than 15 years. The bill addresses the financial
challenges of access and affordability that face American college students. It
provides billions of dollars a year in additional grant aid to low-income students
through the Pell Grant program. It will also help students address the burden
of rising student debt through lower interest rates and a new repayment system.
The bill also trims excessive subsidies that benefit a handful of banks and
directs them to millions of students and families who are working to pay for
college.
The College Cost Reduction and Access Act will:
- Increase the maximum Pell
Grant award by $490 for each of the next two school years, by $690 for the
following two school years and by $1,090 for each following year. The Pell
Grant is the nation’s premier college access program, providing grants to
5 million low-income students each year. The maximum Pell Grant is
currently $4,310.
- Create an income-based
repayment program that allows borrowers to repay their loans as a
percentage of their income. This new program will protect borrowers with
low salaries from having to make unmanageable payments. As a result
students will be able to make employment and life decisions based on their
values rather than the volume of their debt.
- Reduce interest rates on
student loans for more than 5 million low and middle-income student
borrowers receiving subsidized Stafford
loans.
- Finance increased education
spending by reducing subsidies to student lenders. Lenders will receive a
reduced rate of return for offering federal student loans and a slightly
reduced reinsurance rate from the federal government. As a result, the
increased grant aid and loan benefits will have no additional cost to
taxpayers.
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On July 11th, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the "College Cost Reduction Act of 2007" (HR 2669) by a vote of 273-149. The bill will substantially increase the purchasing power of the Pell Grant, the nation's premiere need-based grant program which benefits millions of low income students, increasing the maximum grant amount by $100 for five years beginning in 2008-9. It will make student loan debt more affordable by cutting the interest rate on student loans in half, to 3.4%, by 2012, and by capping loan repayment amounts to a reasonable percentage of a graduate's income. HR 2669 goes a long way toward solving the college affordability and access crisis in the country.
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The U.S. House of Representatives
voted to increase the size of the maximum Pell Grant by $260, to $4,310. This
is the first time the size of the Pell Grant has been increased since 2002. The
Pell Grant is the federal government’s premier need-based grant aid program,
providing aid to more than five million low-income
students.
Over the last five years, while
students have paid more for college, the maximum Pell Grant has remained frozen.
As a result students have had to make up the gap between tuition and aid with
more work and larger loans. This increase will start to provide students with
the aid they need to access an affordable college education. To fully restore
the Pell Grant to its historic value, we’re continuing to call for the maximum
to be increased to $5,100 in the coming budget cycle.
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On
January 18th, by a vote of 264 to 163, the
U.S. House of Representatives passed the Clean Energy Act. The U.S.
PIRG-backed measure closes some tax loopholes for big oil companies, recovers
billions in lost royalties for drilling in public waters, and shifts more than
$14 billion to investments in clean energy.
By harnessing renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and clean biofuels, we
can secure our economy and create jobs. By promoting technologies to save
energy, we can dramatically reduce our dependence on oil and save consumers
money. More than ever, America
needs a new direction on energy policy. With the passage of the CLEAN Energy
Act of 2007, Congress would send a clear message that they are ready to start
solving our energy problems.
For more information, read
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7006189616.
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On January 17th, by a vote of 356 to 71, the U.S. House passed, by an
overwhelming bipartisan majority, legislation to lower the interest rates on
student loans over the next five years. According to an analysis by the Student
PIRGs, the move would save the average low or middle-income borrower starting
school in 2007 $2,300 in debt.
“H.R. 5 pays for better benefits for
students by cutting excessive federal subsidies to private lenders,” explained
U.S. PIRG Higher Education Advocate Luke Swarthout. “The bill saves millions of
students thousands of dollars over the life of their loans by eliminating
wasteful subsidies.
The
bill, H.R. 5, will lower interest rates on subsidized Stafford student loans, which are used overwhelmingly by
students from low- and middle-income families. The Senate will likely take up the issue of lower
interest rates as a part of a larger package of higher education policies in the
next several months.
For more information, read http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/18/us/18loans.html |
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As of 6:00 PM MST, still an hour before the close of polls, the Arizona Student Vote
Coalition has held one-on-one conversations with over 9,600 students about voting in the week leading up to Election Day. An amazing 2,180 of these contacts have been made today, on Election Day. Students across the state formed the Arizona Student Vote Coalition to make sure that students and the issues that they care about receive attention during the 2006 Election.
“Students are still streaming to the polls. It is obvious that students are excited about
voting, and engaged on the issues,” said Imran Kirkland late this afternoon, an Arizona Students’ Association Board Member and student at ASU West.
The Arizona Student Vote Coalition mobilized voters by focusing on grassroots methods such as tabling on-campus, canvassing residence halls and student neighborhoods, and making reminder phone calls to students before election day. Research has shown that young people are much more likely to vote when they are asked to do so by a peer.
“Many of the students I spoke to were bringing more forms of identification than
required just to be sure that they would be allowed to vote,” stated Isaac Kimes, an
Arizona PIRG Intern and ASU Tempe student.
Youth voter turnout increased significantly during the last election cycle. Among people
aged 18-24 across the country, voter turnout increased 11 percentage points between the 2000 and 2004 elections, while the overall electorate showed a 4 percentage point
increase. In Arizona in 2004, turnout among 18-24 year-olds increased an impressive 17 percentage points. This year the Arizona Student Vote Coalition hopes to increase
turnout amongst 18-24 year-olds over the 2002 midterm election, in which 11% of 18-24 year olds turned out to vote in Arizona.
“Students really could have an impact on this election. I’d like to think that we are the
‘X-factor’ in many of the competitive races,” said Kimes.
The Arizona Student Vote Coalition is comprised of the Arizona Students’ Association
(ASA), the Arizona Public Interest Research Group (Arizona PIRG), and the university
student governments. The Arizona Student Vote Coalition registered over 4,000 students to vote this fall, and did extensive outreach to students to educate them on the candidates and issues prior to the election. The coalition focused on turning out students to vote at Northern Arizona University; the University of Arizona; and the Tempe, West, Downtown, and Polytechnic campuses of Arizona State University.
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A project of:
Arizona Students' Association (ASA)
Arizona Public Interest Research Group (Arizona PIRG)
Undergraduate Student Government at Arizona State University at the Tempe Campus (USG)
Graduate and Professional Student Association at Arizona State University at the Tempe Campus (GPSA)
Associated Students of Arizona State University at the Polytechnic Campus (ASASUP)
Associated Students of Arizona State University at the West Campus (ASASUW)
Associated Students of Northern Arizona University (ASNAU)
Associated Students of the University of Arizona (ASUA)
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