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Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Think No One Misses George W. Bush? Talk to a For-Profit College

     I've been having a go over the for-profit colleges-and the student lenders-for whining about Obama going on a witch hunt against them when the real witch hunt has been the open season they've enjoyed propagating against students for 35 years post the Reagan Revolution. They hate Obama as he is proving to be exactly what he has aspired to be: Reagan in reverse. 

    

    I challenge the for-profits to prove that they are a net benefit to society-I'm very skeptical but as always willing to be persuaded-or anyone who chooses to argue in their behalf. All you have to show is that the benefits that they give society are greater than the considerable costs. 

    As for the college lenders the benefit side to the ledger had better be pretty high to justify the government guarantee which means that students even though they don't get the high paying jobs they had been promised have to pay every last penny of what they have borrowed. 

   You know if they work at 7 Eleven yet owe $100,000 the government garnishes their wages. In any case this was the policy prior to President Obama. As a borrower myself who doesn't even want to think about how much I owe-and no it hasn't' led to any job in my field as basically employers look at me as way over the hill and out of the industry way to long to ever even consider me-I can attest to having benefited from Obama's change in policy myself. 

   Despite everything I owe the lenders are not banging down my door and are giving me all kinds of extensions. At some point I expect to pay something though not the whole amount. I don't feel bad about this-if I had gotten the CFO job my degree promised I'd gladly pay it. 

   So thanks to Obama I at least haven't had to deal with garnished wages or threats of debtor prison to pay fat cat lenders who have failed to live up to their promises. 

  Not many miss George W. Bush. His brother is suffering from being his brother. Republicans simply don't want to be seen in public with him even now.A few years ago the GOP Congress called Cheney to Congress but wouldn't allow cameras in the room. 

  You know who does miss W though? The for profit colleges. That ought to give you a hint as to whether or not they are good for society. 

  "For-profits blame the regulations and investigations for accelerating their financial decline — a turnaround from the way the industry blossomed under what the White House has described as looser restrictions implemented by the George W. Bush administration. (Sally Stroup, general counsel for the industry’s national trade group, worked for Bush’s education secretary after working for for-profit operator Apollo Education Group.)

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/barack-obama-pushes-for-profit-colleges-to-the-brink-119613.html#ixzz3eeUHS07W

    Just remember the zero sum nature of the relationship between what's good for the for-profits and the students they allegedly serve. Looser restrictions for them meant a tighter noose for students. 

    It's very simple:

    For-profit colleges enroll just 11 percent of students nationally, yet account for 44 percent of federal student loan defaults, department officials often say."

    Well, gee. Why do they say it-because they're making it up or it''s the truth?

    "Now-defunct Corinthian was once a giant in the for-profit college industry, before financial sanctions imposed by the Education Department essentially killed it. Three other major operators — DeVry Education Group, Career Education Corp. and Education Management Corp. — announced in the past month that they would either sell or shut down campuses, with some citing the upcoming gainful employment rule."

    "Critics and regulators say the colleges are so vulnerable only because of their own practices. The industry is plagued with student loan borrowing and default rates higher than other types of institutions, and graduates report worse career outcomes."


    Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/barack-obama-pushes-for-profit-colleges-to-the-brink-119613.html#ixzz3eeVMWTdv

    It's hard to see here the argument that the for profits offer value for society. They clearly inflate loans which must please the lenders but that's about it. We've already seen the end of the private lenders and it's not clear what the argument is that the for profits shouldn't follow them. 

 

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