Colleges Want Piece of Federal Government’s “Bailout Pie”

Student Loan Girl — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 23:17:00 GMT

With 39 states anticipating budget shortfalls next year totaling more than $100 billion, colleges are urging Congress to include them in a second economic stimulus bill currently being drafted, The Chronicle of Higher Education reports (“As the Economic Crisis Hits Home, Colleges Seek Help From Congress,” Nov. 13, 2008).

Hard hit by the deteriorating economy and financial markets, many schools are dealing with declining endowments, reduced support from the state, and higher numbers of financially needy students. To help schools overcome these challenges, college lobbyists are asking Congress to include funds for financial aid, research, and infrastructure as part of the new economic-stimulus bill.

The Association of American Universities and the American Association of Medical Colleges are specifically lobbying Congress for more money for research, emphasizing the ways colleges support the economy by creating new jobs, graduating work-ready students, and promoting business development.

In a recent letter from the AAMC quantifying its claims, the organization stated that medical colleges were responsible for about 3 million jobs, $20 billion in state tax revenue and injected $451 billion into the economy last year.

Billions Requested by College Associations

Many college associations representing a wide array of interests have petitioned Congress for several billion dollars, each for distinct purposes:

The AAMC is requesting $1.9 billion for the National Institutes of Health.
The American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the Student Aid Alliance are asking for more than $5 billion to make up for a projected shortfall in Pell Grant funding and for Congress to provide enough funding to meet a recently passed $500 increase to the maximum Pell Grant award.
The Association of American Universities wants bailout money set aside for campus construction projects that have halted across the nation.

In their pursuit of funds, schools are competing with state governments, as well as the ailing airline and auto industries. And with the transfer of power on January 20, 2009 from the current Bush administration to the Obama administration, schools may have to wait until February or later to see if they get the capital infusion they seek.

With so many urgent needs confronting Congress — including the possible collapse of Ford, Chrysler and GM, and the loss of millions of jobs if the automakers don’t receive $25 billion in emergency government loans — colleges realize that they aren’t likely a top priority to receive government aid, the Chronicle suggests.

Cynthia Littlefield, director of federal relations at the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities said, “There are so many people going to the trough who have legitimate needs that it’s going to be hard.”

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The Ford Sync: On the Road and Taking Your Digital Life With You

Student Loan Girl — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 23:19:00 GMT

College students everywhere were dying of anticipation about a month ago, waiting to get their hands on one of Apple’s new iPhones, hailed by some as the new messiah of mobile media. Released last month, it was one of the most hyped products in years, with ads plastered all over the Internet, television and pretty much anywhere else you looked. (See our iPhone review here.)

But at $499–$599, the iPhone’s price tag may be a little steep for you if you’re the average college student. Especially if you were looking to drop almost $1,000 on a new computer for school in the fall.

For those of you who can’t quite bring yourselves to cough up the $500 Apple’s asking, there’s now a cheaper alternative to the iPhone.

Well, sort of. And there’s a catch.

Cheaper Than an iPhone?

The Ford Sync, being debuted this fall as the premier “in-vehicle integration system,” allows you to connect your cell phone with your MP3 player and other digital devices in one simple, easy-to-manage unit.

The Sync will only run you about $395, which is $200 cheaper than the higher-end iPhone.

The catch? You’ve got to buy a car to get it.

Now, if you’re in the market for new wheels at the same time you happen to be dying for a gadget as cool as the iPhone, you’re in luck. Just buy one of the 12 “high series” Ford or Lincoln-Mercury models that come equipped with the Sync. Or if you’re getting a lower end model, add the Sync as an option for $395 .

Although only available on 12 models this fall, over the next couple of years, according to an article that appeared on Jalopnik.com, the Sync will become standard on all Ford and Lincoln-Mercury models (“Ford Offers Sync System for $395,” Aug. 9, 2007).

The Sync vs. the iPhone

In all fairness, the Apple iPhone and Ford Sync aren’t really head-to-head competitors, although they have a lot in common. The iPhone, a do-everything mobile-media device of extraordinary design, integrates Web browsing, e-mail, a PDA and an iPod into a cell phone.

The Sync, on the other hand, isn’t an on-the-go media device but an “in-car communications and entertainment system” meant to network all those on-the-go media devices. The Sync allows you to combine your MP3 player, your Bluetooth-compatible cell phone, and any other media devices into a single rolling mobile communications center for your car.

Go Hands-Free With Voice Recognition

What’s really cool about the Sync? Its voice recognition feature lets you choose the songs or playlists you want to listen to just by naming them. No more risking your life and everyone else’s on the road because you’re fiddling with buttons, dials or click-wheels.

The Entertainment and Communications Headquarters That Rolls With You

Ford developed the Sync in an attempt to appeal to the MP3 generation that’s increasingly demanding more and more ways to stay plugged in wherever they are, whenever it is.

Ford’s research, according to the Jalopnik piece, found that more than 70 percent of those looking to buy new cars want to be able to use their digital media players in their vehicles.

And in that group of people so prized by marketing execs, consumers aged 18 to 24, nearly 60 percent own at least one digital media player, which most of them will be wanting to hook up when they’re out looking for their new car.

“Drivers want a simple solution to stay connected to the information, entertainment and people most important to them while on the road,” says Velle Kolde, product manager of Microsoft’s Automotive Business Unit, as quoted by Jalopnik. “Ford Sync, based on the Microsoft Auto software platform, is an updatable, smart and convenient solution for connecting your car with your life.”

Whatever your hang-up, whether you go into a state of paralysis without your cell phone, or you’re spinning ultimate MP3 mixes 24/7, or you’re a mobile media junkie who needs it all, the Ford Sync brings your digital world together. So you can stay connected and text, talk, DJ, e-mail or even work on your Lit 101 paper while you’re on a spur-of-the-moment weekend road trip or just trying to get through the traffic to get to class.

Now your only decision is which Ford car you’re going to buy.

Go to www.nextstudent.com for all your student loan needs.

Student Loan Girl

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Student Loan Blog : Ford

Colleges Want Piece of Federal Government’s “Bailout Pie”

The Ford Sync: On the Road and Taking Your Digital Life With You