President Looks To More Affordable Higher Level Education
ANN ARBOR (WWJ/AP) - President Barack Obama told a crowd at the University of Michigan Friday morning that colleges, universities and states must do more to ensure that higher education is affordable or face possible funding cuts.
"I was so pleased that he recognizes the complexity and the fact that the state has a role, the federal government has a role, the universities have a role and all of them have to be working together to make this possible," said Coleman.
Coleman says since she arrived at U of M, the state has dropped from "Top 10" to 39th in the nation in funding for higher education.
President Obama's higher education reform plan calls for tying federal aid to schools to the levels of state support for its schools, as well as each schools' performance, their transparency for students and parents, results for students, and making financial aid more readily available, more affordable and with less burdensome repayment terms.
Speaking before about 4,000 students and faculty inside the Glick Field House on campus, the President also talked about the importance of manufacturing the nation's economic recovery.
"Michigan is all about making stuff, if there is anybody in American that can teach us how to bring back manufacturing it is the great state of Michigan," said Obama.
The speech wrapped up a three-day, post-State of the Union tour of politically crucial states to promote the President's economic policies.
MORE: Obama's Speech At U-M
(TM and © Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
