On topics from financial aid to No Child Left Behind, advisers for President Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney offered sharply different views on the federal role in education at a joint appearance before a Washington, D.C. audience Tuesday.
Romney adviser Martin West and Obama adviser Jon Schnur conducted a polite but pointed debate about how their candidates would conduct federal education policy beginning in 2013. The Romney adviser said his candidate would shift funding from bureaucrats to child-focused services, while Schnur said Obama would continue a formula for federal investment that includes funds for existing programs and seed money for new innovations.
Through Race to the Top and other initiatives, Obama “has shifted the federal role in education to incentivize new efforts at the state and local levels,” Schnur said. The president also “doubled down” on Pell Grants to help 10 million college students.
Schnur lauded Obama for ending $61 billion in student loan subsidies to banks and redistributing that money to community colleges and student financial aid programs. “This was a revenue-neutral way to shift funds from banks to kids,” he said.
While noting that Romney has no plans to cut education spending, West criticized the president for having no plan to deal with a projected $58 billion shortfall in the Pell program over the next decade. He also chided the White House for short-term solutions on student loan interest rates when long-term answers are needed to stabilize these programs.
As governor of Massachusetts, Romney worked in a bipartisan way to craft affordable solutions that benefit students. If elected in November, “He will do it again,” West said.
Speaking at an American Enterprise Institute forum, both advisers said the federal government has a role to play in education but found little agreement on K-12 issues. Romney would make $25 billion in federal Title I and special education funds portable for students, meaning that families could use the money to help switch schools or pay for extra tutoring and academic support.
