Tom Mortenson: The impact of financial decisions on access and opportunity

Abstract

Tom Mortenson: The impact of financial decisions on access and opportunity is a podcast interview with Tom Mortenson, Senior Scholar at the Pell Institute and Editor/Publisher of Postsecondary Education Opportunity. Mortenson notes how high school performance, transition to college, persistence in college, and the transition to the working world are contributing factors to access. He is particularly concerned about access to higher education for low-income students and male students. Mortenson discusses how changes in policy since 1980 have had a negative effect on the United States competitive standing with other developed democracies with regard to attaining higher education. Citing data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), he discusses this decline and its relationship to a lack of state support for higher education along with a shift in federal aid from need-based grants to loans. Additionally, Mortenson notes how exclusivity as a value within higher education is contributing to a persistent class-gap in the United States. Interview facilitation, commentary and discussion presented by Kathryn Dodge, Alison Griffin, and Elise Scanlon of Radio Higher Ed