By Jenna Duncan, News Staff

The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 (SAFSA) will move forward today from the House of Representatives to the Senate, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said.
In a conference call held for college media outlets on Tuesday, Secretary Duncan, Representative and chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee George Miller (D-Calif.) and Representative Tim Bishop (D-N.Y.) explained SAFSA will invest $87 billion into education, covering preschool up through college. Although the bill mentions no specifics about funding, Miller said it will be at ‘absolutely no cost to the tax payer.’
‘We are making these investments because these are priorities President [Barack] Obama has set for the education agenda,’ he said. ‘The purpose is to help students and their families afford college.’
The bill, he said, is inspired by President Obama’s goal to lead the world in college graduates by 2020.
‘We have basically flat-lined [in graduates] for the past two decades,’ Miller said.
This will begin with preschool programs, to help disadvantaged kids be on a more level playing field, which would help lessen the needs for remedial classes in elementary schools.
‘We have to get out of this catch up business,’ Duncan said.
Additionally, the programs will encourage students to work towards going to college, since the bill aims to make college a more attainable goal for younger students.
‘For our fifth and sixth graders … that dream of college too often starts to die at an early age,’ Duncan said. ‘You’re going to have a chance to go to college … and fulfill your dreams.’
A large chunk of the money, $12 billion, will be allotted to various community colleges.’ ‘
‘Community colleges are the unpolished gems of the education continuum,’ Duncan said. ‘Community colleges are going to help not only individuals, but families.’
These notions are supported by some students, even though this doesn’t directly affect them.
‘I’m a big supporter of education, so if that’s going to help the common person get more education, then I’m all for it,’ said Tricia Kiefer, a sophomore anthropology major.
According to Bishop, one of every two college students will not graduate, leading to a new focus of retention of students. This bill focuses ‘not just on access, but attainment,’ Miller added.
Loan reform is also included in the bill, and though Miller did not elaborate, he acknowledged that many lenders at banks have been making massive profits off of student loans, and this will be stopped.
‘In the past, Congress has uncovered these shady practices and said, ‘no more’,’ he said.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) also underwent reform through the bill, and will be changed for the 2011-2012 school year. The main adjustment is eliminating the assets section of the form, which takes away six questions and penalty for families saving money.
‘FAFSA is a roadblock to a lot of families,’ Bishop said. ‘Anyone that has been through the process knows how difficult it can be.’
The legislation now places an asset cap, however, so if a family’s income per child is above $150,000, the student is ineligible for need-based aid, included need-based grants, loans and work-study.
Another large change is regarding the drug policies, where before students could lose eligibility for possession or sale of a controlled substance during enrollment. Now, aid will be suspended for two years if there is one offense, but indefinitely for any additional offenses.
The representatives said that this has been a large part of the controversy surrounding the bill, but not to believe it will block the passing of the bill. Some students said they think this change is positive, however.
‘I definitely agree [with this],’ Kiefer said. ‘I think people should always have the opportunity to change and redeem themselves.’
The supporters of SAFSA also have included headway for new technologies, predominantly online schooling.
‘We have tremendous interest [in online education],’ Duncan said. ‘We want to develop online curriculum.’
With the president’s support, Duncan said endorsers of the bill are hopefully it will be passed soon, and signed into law by the beginning of next year.
‘I think we are going to be successful whether [the Senate] changes the bill or not,’ Duncan said. ‘I think we will have it to the president’s desk before the holidays.’
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