In his State of the Union address, Obama stated that not even an increase in federal student aid and in state budgets would be enough to make college an attainable goal for all Americans. The president said the institutions themselves need to make an effort now as well.

With tuition just under $30,000 per year, the average Biola student receives a financial aid package of $18,342. Despite the aid, Biola students graduate with an average debt of $32,091, according to College Board.

According to a Jan. 27 White House press release, Obama elaborated on this request in a speech given at the University of Michigan, saying, “Colleges that do the most to provide students with good long-term value will be rewarded with additional dollars to help students attend. Those that don’t act responsibly in setting tuition will receive less in terms of financial aid.”

Noble intentions face rough road ahead

David Peters, a Biola political science professor, says this plan is “noble, fair and idealistic.” Peters recognizes this plan will need to “overcome a lot of inertia,” especially considering the recent attack on this plan from potential presidential opponent Rick Santorum. However, Peters says he is grateful Obama is able to come up with a plan to make the possibility of higher education a reality for all Americans.

Obama furthered this zeal for college affordability with propositions such as raising the Pell grant by $85, doubling the number of work-study jobs and maintaining a 3.4 percent interest rate on subsidized Stafford loans, according to Obama’s recent budget proposal released on Feb. 13.

Plan impractical in current economy

Scott Waller, Biola’s assistant professor of political science, says Obama’s requests and proposals are at the “height of hypocrisy” because of the condition of the economy and federal budget.

“This would mean more if [Obama] got his budget together, and I would say the same thing to Bush,” Waller said.

To Waller, the plan lacks strength because of the $6 trillion increase in federal debt in only four years and the lack of adequate plans to stop this trend from continuing.

Attempting to keep tuition increases low

Over the past four years, Biola’s tuition price has steadily increased by a little over $1,000 each year, according to trends in Biola University’s Tuition Information. Despite this steady increase, Biola has been attempting to keep tuition costs at a minimum, even before Obama’s request, according to Jonathan Seruyange, assistant director of Financial Aid.

“The [tuition price] is continually higher, the actual percentage of increase has gradually lessened over the past few years,” Seruyange said.