Education Gets Big Piece Of The Proposed $825 Billion Economic Stimulus Package
Students, researchers, and colleges could benefit greatly from the proposed $825 billion economic-stimulus plan unveiled by Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Rep. David Obey recently released details of the proposed American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill of 2009; a bill that includes $550 billion in investments and $275 billion in economic recovery tax cuts.
The House’s version of the economic stimulus package would provide as much as $20 billion for students, $8 billion for scientific research, $9 billion for academic facilities, and $39 billion for states for education purposes.
The bill would provide the following funding to education:
- Increase the maximum Pell Grant by $500, from $4,850 to $5,350 for 2009-2010
- Increase limits on unsubsidized Stafford loans by $2,000
- Replace the Hope tax credit with a tax credit worth up to $2,500 a year, of which $1,000 is refundable to help students from low-income families
- $490 million in additional funding for undergraduate and graduate work-study
- $50 million additional funding to help the Department of Education administer student aid programs
- $14 billion for K-12 technology upgrades and energy efficiency improvements:
- $6 billion for higher education technology upgrades and energy efficiency improvements
- $1 billion for computer and science labs and teacher technology training
- $39 billion to local school districts and public colleges and universities to help restore cuts to critical education programs
- $15 billion to states in bonus grants as a reward for meeting key performance measures
- $25 billion to states for other education needs
- $4 billion in grants to community colleges and for-profit institutions that provide adult education and job training
However, this House bill will most likely be changed soon, since the Senate is currently drafting its own version and there are several steps remaining in the political process prior to the bill landing on the president’s desk for signing.
Student Gets College Degree In Just 2 Years
Andrew Brisbin entered North Central Texas College at age 14 and transferred to the University of Texas a year later. He graduated from the UT School of Business in December at age 16, an age when most students have yet to receive their high school diplomas. He completed the requirements for a bachelor’s degree in finance in two years by attending summer school and taking a heavy course load.
Harvard Endowment Gets Hit By Economic Crisis – Loses $8 Billion in 2008
Harvard University’s endowment, the largest of any college or university, stood at $36.9 billion, or a loss of about $8 billion in its 2008 fiscal year. $8 billion is more than the entire endowments of all but six U.S. colleges, according to Chronicles of Higher Education. Harvard is also planning for an additional 30% decline in it’s 2009 fiscal year.
The I.R.S. Considers Scrutiny Of College Business Activities
According to a senior IRS official, the Internal Revenue Service may soon focus on the billions of dollars associated with academic research, federal financing and intellectual property at various colleges around the country. This is an expansion of an original investigation to learn more about whether academic institutions are improperly using their nonprofit status to avoid paying certain taxes. Some endowments have tried to avoid income tax by investing with offshore hedge funds and placing its intellectual property in overseas tax havens.
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