Report: Va. rates poorly for affordable education
By Caroline Freeman | September 16, 2004A national nonprofit organization released a "report card" yesterday on each state's educational system, giving the Commonwealth of Virginia average marks in some categories but a near-failing grade in affordability of higher education. The California-based National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education issued a grade for each state in six categories: preparation of students for college, participation in higher education, affordability of higher education, completion of higher education or equivalent programs, benefits of the state from having an educated population and quality of learning. Virginia received a "B+" in preparation, a "B-" in participation, a "D-" in affordability, a "B" in completion, an "A-" in benefits and an "Incomplete" in learning due to lack of comparable state-by-state data. Virginia's poor affordability rating brings up questions about the availability and necessity of financial aid to offset the high prices of college tuition. "In the last decade, we've been moving to a place where parents and students are footing more of the bill," compared to need-based financial aid, said David Breneman, Dean of the Curry School of Education and an adviser on the report.
