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Minnesota students are borrowing more for college
A recent report from the Minnesota Office of Higher Education (OHE) shows that student loans are becoming an increasingly important financing option used by families to pay for college. Minnesota students, especially those at public institutions, are significantly more likely to borrow than are students nationally, and those who do borrow have significantly higher average levels of debt. Borrowing among undergraduates is now prevalent across all income groups at both public and private institutions.
Minnesota institutions took out student loans, compared to just 50% nationally. The average annual loan amount for those students was $6,600, which was $400 more than the national level.
Students at private colleges borrowed more than their public counterparts. The average full-time, dependent undergraduate at a four-year, private not-for-profit institution in Minnesota borrowed $7,910 in 2003-2004, about $1,500 more than similar students at public four-year institutions. The public students had about the same rates of borrowing, however, (78%), as the students at private institutions (73%).
Among dependent students in Minnesota, those from the wealthiest families, with incomes above $90,000, borrowed the largest amounts ($6,800 per year, on average). This income group has also shown the largest increase in the prevalence of borrowing, with the rates fully doubling, to 57%, since 1999-2000. Students from these families in Minnesota are now equally likely to borrow as those from families with under $30,000 of income.
The report suggests that reasons for the increased borrowing include rising college costs, lower student loan interest rates, and Minnesota’s higher income levels—which seem to increase families’ capacity to borrow along with their inclination to do so for higher education purposes.
View all data in the Undergraduate Borrowing Report
MPCC efforts at the Legislature focus on increasing funding for the State Grant Program
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| St. Mary's University of Minnesota students meet with Rep. Gene Pelowski |
MPCC’s legislative efforts and 2006 Days at the Capitol events where students meet with legislators are focusing on one message this year. We’re asking the legislature to make a $7 million investment in the State Grant Program.
Now more than ever, it is critical that students with higher education aspirations receive the support they need. The Minnesota State Grant Program is a cost-effective way to fund the higher education goals of low- and middle-income Minnesotans. Our request will provide needed support to more than 70,000 public- and private-college students across Minnesota who receive a State Grant, allowing them up to an additional $500 next year to help cover their higher education costs.
By assisting these students, we open doors to opportunities many Minnesotans might not have otherwise had. We increase their potential to successfully graduate in a timely manner—and as a result, we help bolster our state’s workforce by providing well-educated individuals, strengthening our society and maintaining our quality of life.
To support our legislative proposal, the institutional members of the MPCC have launched a series of Days at the Capitol. Students, faculty, administration and alumni from each campus are meeting with their legislators and telling their personal stories of how the State Grant Program has affected them and their classmates.
View the 2006 legislative agenda
ChangeMakers program pitches ideas on education for the innovation economy
A panel of Minnesota leaders fired a volley of innovative ideas for ramping up the educational preparation of the next generation at the March 14 ChangeMakers program. “Talent: Educating and Preparing Our Human Capital to Fuel the Innovation Economy” was sponsored by the Citizens League and moderated by Vance Opperman, co-chair of the Governor’s 2005 higher education study committee. The diverse audience of more than 300 was eager to learn about what could be done to improve education in the state, and the panel did not disappoint.
- Art Rolnick, senior vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank, discussed the economic returns of investment in early childhood education and outlined a plan to create a $1.5 billion endowment to fund quality pre-natal through pre-K education in Minnesota in perpetuity.
- Eric Jolly, president of the Science Museum of Minnesota, presented his ideas for improving student success in mathematics and the sciences by implementing curriculum and program reforms that foster engagement, continuity and capacity.
- Pat Harvey, co-director of the State Alliance for High Performance and professor of education at the University of Minnesota, argued forcefully for increasing the length of the school day and school year in order to keep up with other nations and to counterbalance the cultural pressures outside of school.
- James McCormick, chancellor of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, discussed the importance of the state’s ability to develop a solution to the pipeline problem, and to create a culture of innovation, in order to meet high goals for educational attainment.
- Stephen Shank, chairman and CEO of Capella Education, argued that education must become accountable for outcomes, and must be able to measure and reward progress towards those outcomes, in order to effectively drive change and innovation.
According to these leaders, education is the fuel for the innovation economy. Their discussion was very thought-provoking.
New scholarship fund to support students of color, first generation students and new Americans
Minnesota's private colleges are working to make college possible for students who haven’t always thought of college as an option. The Access & Equity (A & E) Scholarship Fund is the newest offering that demonstrates our commitment to providing strong scholarship support. Initiated with a generous lead gift given on behalf of Cub Foods and SUPERVALU, A&E is designed for students with financial need who are students of color, new Americans or first generation students.
As our communities become more diverse, so do the students enrolling at our institutions. One of every seven students attending our schools is the first member of their family to attend college. Eleven percent of our students are students of color. We are committed to seeing these numbers increase. Our colleges are an excellent fit for many of these students with their outstanding academic and pathway programs, high graduation rates and commitment to diversity. For more about giving to the A&E Scholarship Fund, contact fund.scholarships@mnprivatecolleges.org.
Five MPCC schools receive grants for projects that strengthen partnerships with communities
MPCC institutions recognize the importance and value of strong partnerships with community organizations. Recently, five of our schools received grants for their innovative efforts to improve service-learning opportunities and campus-community collaborations. All programs address community issues and help community organizations to fulfill their mission. The grants, awarded by the Minnesota Office of Higher Education, also went to eight recipients from public colleges. MPCC projects include:
- Academic Civic Engagement at Carleton College: Planning for Quality and a Sustainable Future ($17,942) — conversations with community members and Carleton faculty, staff and students, as well as research activities, workshops and planning will result in an evaluation of academic civic engagement and recommendations for the future.
- Jump Start Bridge Program, College of St. Scholastica ($13,847) a two-week residential program before fall semester 2006 to increase retention rates among underrepresented first-year students. The students will participate in service-learning activities and receive ongoing support and opportunities for community involvement.
- Deepening Community-Based Learning Through Collaboration and Assessment, Hamline University ($20,000) — an evaluation of Hamline’s seven community-based learning programs and recommendations for future programs, structures and partnerships.
- Opportunities Abound, Macalester College ($20,000) — Macalester and Admission Possible seek to increase the quality, scope and sustainability of their partnership to heighten the aspirations and ability of youth to continue their education beyond high school. This project also aims to strengthen relationships with other local programs providing resources for college access and success.
- The Changing Faces of Minnesota: The Dignity of Human Life – HIV/AIDS, University of St. Thomas ($19,746) — a partnership with Open Arms Minnesota to increase Open Arms’ capacity to serve its clients and increase students’ awareness, learning and advocacy about HIV/AIDS.
New presidents named at Augsburg and St. Olaf
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| Paul Pribbenow |
Paul C. Pribbenow will take the helm at Augsburg College this summer as will David R. Anderson at St. Olaf College. Pribbenow has served as president of Rockford College in Rockford, Ill. since 2002 and will be Augburg’s 11th president. At Rockford, Pribbenow launched new educational initiatives including the Jane Addams Center for Civic Engagement that helps students integrate service to the community into their overall educational experience. “In Paul Pribbenow, we feel we have found a successor who will not only carry on Augsburg’s commitment to being a college committed to a Christian understanding of vocation, but will maximize its exciting potential for the future,” said search committee chair Ted Grindal.
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| David Anderson |
David R. Anderson, a 1974 graduate of St. Olaf College, will begin his duties as St. Olaf’s 11th president in July. Currently the provost and a professor of English at Denison University in Granville, Ohio, this will be his first college presidency. "David has a complete understanding of and absolute passion for what it means to be a liberal arts college of the church," says Jerrol M. Tostrud '60, chair of the St. Olaf Board of Regents. A native of LaCrosse, Wis., Anderson says he relishes the prospect of returning to his alma mater, an institution that has developed a higher profile nationwide in recent years.
The Minnesota Private College Council, Fund and Research Foundation represent 17 of the state’s most respected four-year, liberal arts colleges and universities as well as more than 54,000 students. We are: Augsburg College, Bethany Lutheran College, Bethel University, Carleton College, Concordia College (Moorhead), Concordia University (St. Paul), College of Saint Benedict, College of St. Catherine, College of St. Scholastica, Gustavus Adolphus College, Hamline University, Macalester College, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, Saint John’s University, St. Olaf College, and the University of St. Thomas.
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