LawSchoolLoans News Wire
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Thursday, 27th April |
Bush Commission Causes Concern
By Charisse Dengler![](http://www.lawschoolloans.com/images/blanker.gif") 
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In an effort to fix some of the problems with federal aid programs, a commission is considering different options that would change the accreditation and aid-allocation processes.
Due to recent rises in the cost of higher education and the drop in literacy rates among college graduates, the committee was mandated by the Bush administration to address these and other education problems.
In an issue paper on the subject of accountability, Charles Miller, leader of the commission, and Geri Malandra, a member of the commission, wrote that "our reputation as a world leader is in jeopardy of slipping and our higher education system is at great risk."
The two went on to write that "higher education in this country is a mature sector that is not paying attention to internal problems and globally disruptive forces."
"If we do not forthrightly address these problems, our country will fall farther behind and risk losing the preeminent position that inspires pride and imitation," they wrote.
The group of 19 was put together by Margaret Spellings, Education Secretary, and is made up of both education and business officials.
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OPINION on Student Aid Reform
By Anne O'Dell
Student aid reform has become a visible and immediate topic over the past several months. Although President Bush’s commission on the subject was only announced last September, dwindling funds for state and federal programs in the face of rising tuition costs have become the depressingly constant subject of complaints from students and administrators year after year. Even more discouraging is the federal government’s doublespeak insistence that the administration is bolstering financial aid.
Some streamlining to student aid could be helpful; however, the various savings, loan, and grant programs that currently exist all serve a purpose; and the government should continue to offer a variety of options for students to obtain adequate financial aid.
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Schools Open Scholarships to All
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By Charisse Dengler
As the result of two 2003 Supreme Court cases, colleges and universities nationwide are now making minority scholarships and other programs available to everyone. While the cases, which involved the University of Michigan, did not outlaw race-specific programs, they did leave the law in an ambiguous state, causing officials to rethink many of their policies.
In Grutter v. Bollinger, the court ruled that the school's consideration of race in admission to its law school was acceptable. However, in Gratz v. Bollinger, the court ruled that the use of race in undergraduate admissions was unfair.
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White Students Seeing More Aid
Many institutions are allowing non-minority student to apply for and receive fellowships and scholarships that were originally intended for minorities. The redirecting of this aid is largely due to pressure from the federal government and the possibility of facing litigation such as the two University of Michigan Supreme Court cases in 2003. UM was targeted for its minority-friendly admissions policy; today, the state of the law remains ambiguous.
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KY Law Students Lose Funds
Low-income students at Kentucky's three public law schools are losing a badly needed source of financial aid. A scholarship program known as Kentucky Legal Education Opportunity (KLEO) was recently ended by the state Senate, causing a wave of distress in both school administrators and government officials.
KLEO was created by Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Joseph Lambert to increase the opportunities for disadvantaged students to attend law school.
According to one lawmaker, the Kentucky House of Representatives included $250,000 for the program in its budget, but the Senate cut the program completely. Some state senators feel it would be more appropriate to fund the program through the state’s financial aid agency.
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