Stafford loans are scheduled to double from around 3% to over 6% in the next few weeks! Almost every middle to lower income person with a college education in America has or is benefiting from these low interest, federally subsidized loans. Americans are saddled with more debt due to student loans than credit cards and we cannot afford this increase, especially now. President Obama proposes funding the continuation of low interest rates by cutting federal subsidies for oil and gas companies, currently earning record profits of 104 million dollars every single day. Republicans, also wanting to keep loan rates low, propose getting the funds from federal money allocated to preventative medecine for women and children, like mammograms and vaccinations. We must let all our Congress know that they have no reasonable grounds for keeping these interest rates low by compromising the heath of American women and children. There is only one choice, stop lining the pockets of big oil.

Despite changes under the current administration, high-stakes testing remains a cornerstone of "accountability measures" for schools. This testing harms schools and has caused states to lower their standards so that their students perform better on the tests. Teachers are now so stressed from this unreasonable emphasis on testing, which takes away from college readiness and higher-order thinking, that they routinely dissuade others from entering this important field. We call on President Obama to end high-stakes testing in schools and develop alternative means of school improvement using those same resources. Please also sign the Whitehouse.gov petition: www.wh.gov/PtG

Teachers work tirelessly on behalf of students every day. Yet, in an attempt to promote his brand, Kenneth Cole posted a billboard in New York City that pits teachers against students, falsely claiming that teachers' rights conflict with those of the students they cherish and serve. We need to tell this company that teachers and students stand together-- that we ALL stand together in support of our schools and our future.

The federal student loan program charges interest. The low interest rate is already higher than what the government pays to borrow. The Republicans in Congress think that extending a popular program that earns a profit for the government needs to be "paid for" through healthcare cuts. Tell President Obama to veto any attempt to take money away from Americans' health or to hold students hostage.

Petition Supporting Student Loan Forgiveness Act Nears 1 Million Signatures Posted by Shannon Rasberry on Apr 26, 2012 in Student Loan Debt, Student Loan Legislation, Student Loan Programs | 3 comments A petition in support of legislation that would provide dramatic relief for student loan borrowers neared one million signatures Thursday, a day after the total outstanding debt from student loans supposedly reached $1 trillion. Wednesday was “1-T Day,” according to Robert Applebaum, founder of ForgiveStudentLoanDebt.com and the creator of a petition calling on Americans to support the Student Loan Forgiveness Act of 2012, proposed by Rep. Hansen Clarke, a Democrat from Michigan. In an email, Applebaum urged organizations and individuals to participate in a National Day of Action by signing the petition and spreading the word about Clarke’s proposed legislation. “Total outstanding student loan debt in America is expected to exceed $1 TRILLION this year,” the petition reads. “Millions of hardworking, taxpaying, educated Americans are being crushed under the weight of their educational debts, while the economy continues to sputter. Support a REAL economic stimulus and jobs plan. Support the Student Loan Forgiveness Act of 2012 (H.R. 4170).” By Thursday morning, the petition, hosted by SignOn.org, had over 912,000 signatures. It will eventually be delivered to Rep. John Kline, D-Minn., the U.S. House of Representatives , the U.S. Senate, and President Barack Obama. Clarke’s proposed legislation would significantly alter federal student loan repayment policies for current and future borrowers: Create a “10–10 standard” for student loan forgiveness by limiting payments to 10 percent of a borrowers discretionary income for 10 years, after which any remaining debt would be forgiven Current borrowers, including those who are delinquent, would be grandfathered into the 10–10 program and allowed to count the amount they have already paid over the past decade toward meeting the forgiveness requirement Cap interest rates on federal student loans at 3.4 percent Borrowers whose education loan debt exceeds their income would be allowed to convert private student loan debt into federal Direct loans, at 3.4 percent interest, which would then be enrolled in the 10–10 program Reduce the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness requirement from 10 years to five years for graduates who enter public service professions or agree to work in underserved areas of the country Current borrowers would be eligible for 100 percent forgiveness under the 10–10 program, but future borrowers would be subject to a $45,520 cap on forgiveness (the average cost of a degree from a four-year public university) According to the bill’s language, the legislation would be financed by projected savings from the end of Iraq and Afghanistan Overseas Contingency Operations and would not take funding from existing financial aid programs. For Applebaum, Clarke’s legislation would help undo a commoditization of education that has developed over the past three decades, allow borrowers to once again participate in the economy, and help improve the financial situation of all Americans. “As a result of more than 30 years of treating higher education as an individual commodity, rather than a public good and an investment in our collective future,” Applebaum wrote, “those buried under the weight of their student loan debt are not buying homes or cars, not starting businesses or families, and they’re not investing, inventing, innovating or otherwise engaged in any of the economically stimulative activities that we need all Americans to be engaged in if we’re ever to dig ourselves out of the giant hole created by the greed of those at the very top.”

Improving schools means more than just closure or a change in management. There is a great source of untapped potential waiting to be unleashed in our schools and communities. We need a policy on educator-led school transformation in Philadelphia. For more information contact OneVoice Philadelphia. Groups in OneVoice Philadelphia include: Teacher Action Group, Philadelphia Student Union, West Philly Coalition for Neighborhood Schools, Parent Power, Education Voters PA and others.

Senators and congressonal members have gutted school finance over the past decades all the while allowing their own children to attend private schools. This petition seeks to requires senators and congressional members to send their own children to public schools. By doing this we are tying the success of the public school system to the success of the peoples children who make make the funding choices. By doing this we are taking the inequality out of the system that leaves scores of the less fortunate even more disenfranchised.

We're all up in arms about the banks making out big and the country hurting. We're also upset with the stock market players paying less in taxes than the wage slaves. How about taxing the stock market .0000001 dollar for every share traded to help fund education or health care?

Public schools need to focus on developmental and learning issues for our children in the classroom.

It's time to begin a War on Ignorance in America. We call on the US Congress and President Obama to marshall the forces of the US Government to raise the level of education, public discourse, and respect for intelligence in this country and worldwide. Makes more sense than a war on terror...

This slowly recovering economy has left many college grads with school loans to pay, garnished wages, and bad credit reports with very little job opportunities to prevent inevitable poverty to those who were just trying to earn a better life. Lenders, like Sallie Mae, are relentless in their efforts to take anything they can and this problem is causing permanent financial hardship for individuals that deserve better than this for their efforts.

President Obama's push to hold down interest rates on federal student loans has rapidly turned into an election-year standoff