Colleges scramble to adjust as student loan overhaul nears passage — from washingtonpost.com
As Congress approved landmark higher education legislation Thursday (emphasis DSC), hundreds of colleges and universities were racing to overcome a major logistical challenge: switching within three months from private lenders to the U.S. Education Department as their provider of federal student loans.
The lending overhaul, which would eliminate a 1960s-era program that subsidizes banks and other providers of federally backed loans, was included in a health-care bill the Democratic-led Senate passed Thursday afternoon on a 56 to 43 vote. Democrats pushed the bill through the House hours later on a 220 to 207 vote, clear[ing] it for President Obama’s signature.
The legislation would save the federal government about $61 billion over 10 years, with more than half of the savings channeled into Pell Grants for needy students. More than 8 million students depend on those scholarships, a cornerstone of financial aid. For that reason, many higher education leaders support the overhaul.
Also see:
Historic Victory for Student Aid Is Tinged by Lost Possibilities — from The Chronicle