Leveling the Playing Field
Expanding Access to Higher Education
August 4, 2004
By Demos

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Two-page policy brief outlining the need for a new grant-based investment in higher education ("The Contract for College") in order to grow and protect the middle class.

There has been a fundamental shift in our nation's priorities for ensuring access to higher education. In the 1970s and 1980s, most aid was awarded in grants, while loans remained relatively low. Over the last two decades, federal aid has shifted away from grants to loans, pricing out students from low-incomes and leaving the average college graduate with over $18,000 in student loan debt. Unless dramatic new investments are made, America's promise of equal opportunity and social mobility remains in great peril.