College leaders meet with Obama to discuss costs and productivity
By Tamar Lewin/New York Times
In a private meeting on Monday, President Obama and his secretary of education, Arne Duncan, conferred with a dozen college presidents, mostly from public institutions, and leaders of two nonprofit education organizations, about how to curb the rising cost of college and improve graduation rates. “It was an unusually interesting meeting, and not your usual list of college presidents,” said Jane Wellman, founder and director of the nonprofit Delta Project, which studies college costs. “These were all people who had led institutions that had done something about reducing spending or improving student learning. “There was good discussion on how we drive down tuition, and what the right role is for the federal government,” she said. (more...)