Links for 1/21/10

Sharon Epperson HT:TR

Even Bill Gates can get an unsubsidized Stafford or PLUS loan, there are no income restrictions.

Tim Ranzetta

Don't get me wrong, saving for a college education is absolutely critical. I just think that there are better vehicles than prepaid tuition plans to accomplish this… As for me, I'll continue to recommend to my brothers and sisters to set up a diversified, low cost Vanguard 529 plan which becomes more conservative as children get closer to college age. Yes, you have to live with the market risk with these plans (remember that prepaid plans share that same risk), but at least you don't have to worry about the drama that comes from prepaid plans which rely on solid investment returns, strong actuarial projections on college costs and the steady flow of new participants to keep them financially solvent.

Keith Hampson and Robert Birnbaum

One especially important aspect of the theory suggests that disruptive innovations tend not to come from established organizations. While large, well-run organizations may have the resources to generate innovations, their commitment to existing customers, focusing on improving existing systems, and unwillingness to pursue niche markets, stops them from investing sufficiently in new products and new markets. 

Robert Birnbaum applied this theory to the field of online higher education and came to the following conclusion:
“The logical conclusion of applying the theses of The Innovator’s Dilemma and The Innovator’s Solution to higher education may be that virtual education can thrive in traditional colleges and universities only if it operates outside their normal management and value frameworks, with the consequent risk of losing institutional control.”

Lynn O'Shaughnessy

When parents don’t qualify for student financial aid, it’s rarely because they’ve saved too much.