Government's Role in Higher Education

Towards the end of the article, John Aubrey Douglass says, "Arguably, the federal government has a greater role to play in supporting American higher education that ever before." This reminded me of an e-mail that I received about 10 days ago from the financial aid office. The email explained that the Stafford loans for next year will be disbursed from a government program, Direct Loans, through the Department of Education. The government loans offer guaranteed funding, lower interest rates, and faster disbursement. So even since 2005 the government has made and continues to make significant strides in attempting to assist students with the burdens that accompany higher education. Though they haven't done anything for the snowballing tuition rates, they are attempting to appease some strains.