THE RAW DEAL: John Kerry's Cynical And False Education Attacks

George W. Bush ^ | June 29, 2004

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"Only the politician who said that America's economy was economically better off under Jimmy Carter than Ronald Reagan would consider a thirty percent decrease in what students pay for tuition to be a cost hike. Kerry's cynical attacks are at odds with the facts that more Americans have college degrees than ever before and the amount students pay in tuition costs is down by a third since 1998."

-Steve Schmidt, Bush-Cheney '04 Spokesman

Amount Students Pay In Tuition Costs Is Down, Number Of Graduates Is Up

Kerry Attacks On Tuition Costs, But The Amount Students Pay In Tuition Costs Is Down One Third Since 1998. "What students pay on average for tuition at public universities has fallen by nearly one-third since 1998, thanks to new federal tax breaks and a massive increase in state and federal grants to most students and their families. Contrary to the widespread perception that tuition is soaring out of control, a USA TODAY analysis found that what students actually pay in tuition and fees — rather than the published tuition price — has declined for a vast majority of students attending four-year public universities. In fact, today's students have enjoyed the greatest improvement in college affordability since the GI bill provided benefits for returning World War II veterans." (Dennis Cauchon, "Tuition Burden Falls By A Third," USA Today, 6/28/04)

Kerry Says Americans Not Graduating, But A Record Number Of Americans Have High School And College Diplomas. "More U.S. residents than ever have high school and college diplomas, although rates still vary greatly by race and ethnicity, the Census Bureau says. Among those 25 and older last year, 84.6 percent had graduated from high school, up from 84.1 percent the previous year, according to bureau estimates being released Tuesday. The share of people with at least a bachelor's degree from college also inched up, from 26.7 percent to 27.2 percent, continuing a decades-long rise." (Genaro C. Armas, "More People Graduate High School, College," The Associated Press, 6/29/04)

President Bush's Education Record

Total Financial Aid: In total, student aid for higher education – through grants, loans, and work study -- would increase to more than $73 billion -- a $4.2 billion (six percent) increase over 2004. Almost 10 million students and parents -- a 426,000 increase -- would receive one or more grants, loans or work-study awards. ("President Bush Proposes Record $57 Billion for FY 2005 Education Budget," U.S. Department of Education Press Release, 2/2/04)

Historic Levels of Pell Grant Funding: Since taking office, the President has increased funding for Pell Grants by 47 percent to a record $12.9 billion. In addition, the number of Pell Grant recipients has risen by approximately one million since 2001 to 5.3, while the maximum grant has increased from $3,750 in 2001 to $4,050 in 2005. ("President Bush Proposes Record $57 Billion for FY 2005 Education Budget," U.S. Department of Education Press Release, 2/2/04)

Enhanced Pell Grants: The President proposes to establish a $33 million program to enhance Pell Grants for low-income students who take the rigorous high school curriculum required by the State Scholars Program. This program would provide up to an additional $1,000 per year to students in the first two years of college who complete the rigorous State Scholars curriculum in high school, enroll in college full time, and are Pell Grant recipients. Next year, approximately 36,000 low-income graduating high school seniors would be eligible to receive an enhanced Pell Grant under this proposal. ("Jobs for the 21st Century," White House Fact Sheet, 1/21/04)

No Child Left Behind Holds Schools Accountable For Math And Science Achievement: No Child Left Behind (NCLB) holds schools accountable for ensuring every student is proficient in reading, math and beginning in 2007, science. All states have developed a plan to ensure that achievement gaps are closed between students of different socio-economic backgrounds. States, districts, and schools are using their unique accountability plans to measure the progress of student achievement, report student and school progress to parents, identify for improvement those schools not making adequate yearly progress, provide support for the improvement of schools and districts, and provide options -- including public school choice and tutoring -- for children in underperforming schools.

Increasing Support For Historically Black Colleges And Universities. President Bush’s 2005 budget fulfills his pledge to increase funding for HBCUs and minority-serving institutions by 30 percent since he took office by proposing $240.5 million for HBCUs and $58.5 million for Historically Black Graduate Institutions.

Equipping Students With 21st Century Skills: President Bush is working to ensure America's education system equips students with the skills needed for the today's innovation economy. Programs helping students make progress toward this goal include the American Diploma Project, No Child Left Behind's technology literacy provisions, and the Education Department's Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (Bara Vaida, "Firms, Nonprofit Groups Work To Develop Learning; Roadmap," National Journal's Technology Daily, 4/ 23/03)

Adjunct Teacher Corps: The President has proposed $40 million to bring professionals, with subject-matter knowledge and experience, such as scientists, engineers, and computer specialists, into the classroom. ("Jobs for the 21st Century," White House Fact Sheet, 1/21/04)

Loan Forgiveness For Math And Science Teachers: The President has proposed tripling the amount of loan forgiveness – from $5,000 to $17,500 - for math and science teachers who work for five consecutive years in high-poverty schools. ("In Focus: Education," White House Website, Accessed 6/29/04)

Advanced Placement: The President is proposing a $28 million increase for the Advanced Placement program bringing spending on it to nearly $52 million a year. The increase in funds will ensure that teachers in low-income schools are well-trained to teach AP and IB courses. ("Jobs for the 21st Century," White House Fact Sheet, 1/21/04)

Other Programs Include:

• Mathematics And Science Partnership ($120 Million) 
• State Scholars ($12 Million) 
• Secondary And Technical Education Program ($1 Billion) 
• Presidential Math And Science Scholars Fund (Approximately 20,000 Students Receive Up To $5,000 Each) 
• Jobs For The 21st Century ($250 Million)

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"More U.S. residents than ever have high school and college diplomas"
But how many could read their diplomas? Speak about (grade and) degree inflation. A degree these days is not what it used to be. A text of a high school exam from about early 1900's (somewhere in NJ?) periodically surfaces in print and on the web, with pretty disparaging commentary on today students and their ability (or lack thereof) to pass it.