Introduction
Higher education in the United States has been a front-bench issue right from the timely establishment of the Union. The Founding Fathers correctly recognized the fact that the new nation would not make any progress if education in general and higher education, in particular, was not encouraged. As a prerequisite for innovation and invention, it is clear why they made the choice of supporting higher education. It’s from this platform that the federal government positioned itself as a participant in the higher education field. Participation comes with responsibilities. But what are the responsibilities that the federal government has in the provision of higher education?
Main text
Since higher education is supposed to steer forward the growth of industry and therefore the economy of the nation, the responsibility of the Federal Government should be financing higher education. The existence of low levels of economic ability in some families in the United States means that some families are unable to send their children to school in pursuit of higher education. Most of these children from poor families are highly talented and they are what the nation needs for progress (Lumina Foundation, 2009). It is therefore important that the Federal Government should come in and finance higher education so that the bright but financially challenged students can also have a chance of accessing higher education (Leonhardt, 2009).
Besides financing, higher education comes with a number of complex issues. The United States is a nation of more than three hundred million citizens. The number of institutions of higher learning is equally high, and these institutions offer many areas of specialization. With such a high number of institutions comes the problem of regulation. The question that comes to my mind is: Who is supposed to ensure that the education that is offered is of the right quality? The private sector cannot handle this. Regulation of education is too complex and too expensive to be left in the hands of the state governments. This leaves us with only one body that is large enough with sufficient resources to regulate the quality of education that is offered in the institutions of higher learning. This body is the Federal Government (Lips, 2010).
Having looked into the responsibilities of the Federal government in the provision of higher education, it is crucial to ask ourselves why the Federal government needs to take up these responsibilities. These reasons may have been covered in a brief sensation in the coverage of the responsibilities themselves but stating them again will make them clearer. The poverty in some families in America cannot allow bright students from these families to access higher education. To create this equality of opportunity, the Federal Government should finance higher education. It is not uncommon to find the Federal government sending money to various institutions in the different states in support of higher education (US. Department of Education, 2009). Also, the enormity of the task of regulation can only be handled by the Federal Government.
What Federal policy has been put in place by the Federal Government to ensure that any of these responsibilities are fulfilled for the American people? If we can focus on the responsibility of financing higher education, the federal government has a loan policy in place to ensure that any student who has gotten the marks to proceed with higher education has the chance to do so. The government extends money to students in form of loans for purposes of funding their higher education (de Vise, 2010). These loans are payable upon the completion of education and the acquisition of a job.
Conclusion
In conclusion, financing of higher education is one of the responsibilities that the Federal Government should have towards higher education provision in the United States. Regulation is also another important responsibility. The financing is necessary if equality of opportunity is to be created and the regulation is complex such that only the Federal Government can carry it out. The student loans issue is a federal government policy that is in place to deal with the issue of financing higher education.
References
de Vise,Daniel.(2010).House Approves Huge Changes to Student Loan Program.The Washington Post. Web.
Leonhardt, David. (2009). The Way We Live Now: The College Calculation. New York Times.
Lips, Dan. 2010. Ways to make higher education more affordable. Web.
Lumina Foundation. (2009). A Stronger Nation Through Higher Education: How And Why Americans Must Meet A “Big Goal” For College Attainment. A special report from the Lumina Foundation. Web.
US Department of Education. (2009). Minnesota to Receive More Than $34 Million to Turn Around Its Persistently Lowest Achieving Schools.ED.gov. Web.