President Barack Obama at the University of Buffalo on Aug. 22, 2013, explaining his plan to have the federal government rate colleges. (AP Photo/Keith Srackocic)
Speaking at the University of Buffalo, President Barack Obama today unveiled an ambitious new plan for the federal government to create a national rating system that will define what a good college is and financially reward or punish colleges depending on how they rank in the government’s system.
He said he intends to have the rating system in placed by the fall of 2015 and intends to work with Congress to enact legislation linking federal aid to colleges to the rating system.
As outlined by Obama, this rating system would look at essentially materialistic and financial characteristics of a college as opposed to intellectual and moral ones.
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“My plan comes down to three main goals,” said Obama. “First, we are going to start rating colleges, not just by which college is the most selective, not just by which college is the most expensive, not by which college has the nicest facilities. You can get all that on the existing rating systems. What we want to do is rate them on who is offering the best value so that students and taxpayers get a better bang for their buck.
“Number two, we are going to jump start new competition between colleges, not just on the field or on the court, but in terms of innovation that encourages affordability and encourages student success and doesn’t sacrifice educational quality,” said Obama.
“And the third is we are going to make sure if you have to take on debt to earn your college degree that you have ways to manage and afford it,” he said.
