Obama proposes new system for rating colleges

NEW YORK, BUFFALO, (AP):Calling higher education an "economic imperative", President Barack Obama is pushing for an ambitious new government rating system for colleges that would judge schools on affordability and performance and ultimately determine how federal financial aid is distributed.

The rating system, which the president wants implemented before the 2015 school year, would evaluate colleges on several criteria, including average tuition and student loan debt, graduation rates, and the average earning of graduates. Obama says he will ask Congress to link the new rating system to the way federal financial aid is disbursed, with students attending highly rated schools receiving larger grants and more affordable student loans.

"It's time to stop subsidising schools that are not producing good results and reward schools that deliver American students of our future," Obama told a crowd of more than 7,000 at the University of Buffalo.