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☆ Connecticut takes aim at the college affordability crisis — 'We're trying to do everything we can,' governor says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Hartford, Connecticut Sean Pavone | Istock | Getty ImagesWhen it comes to improving access to higher education, each state is largely left to its own devices. Connecticut, for example, recently rolled out several programs to establish pathways to college and lower the debt burden. Free college program"We're trying to do everything we can to make education less expensive to start with," Lamont said. Like a growing number of states, Connecticut recently introduced a free tuition program for students attending community college either full- or part-time. In Connecticut, students receive "last-dollar" scholarships, meaning the program pays for whatever tuition and fees are left after federal aid and other grants are applied.

Persons: Hartford , Connecticut Sean Pavone, Anthony Carnevale, Ned Lamont, Here's, Lamont, Joe Biden, Terrence Cheng, Sandy Baum, Baum Organizations: Istock, Georgetown's Center, Education, Workforce, CNBC, Free, Finance, Harvard, State Colleges, Urban Institute's Center Locations: Hartford , Connecticut, Connecticut, , Connecticut

☆ Biden makes another push for tuition-free community college. Here's why it may work this time
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

When President Joe Biden unveiled the details of his Plan B for student loan forgiveness, he revealed that his hope to make some college free was not dead. "I also want to make community college tuition free so you don't need loans at all," Biden said after including free community college as part of his $7.3 trillion budget for fiscal 2025. "Student loan forgiveness is a Band-Aid," said Ryan Morgan, CEO of the Campaign for Free College Tuition. "Loan forgiveness is a snapshot in time in terms of a fix," Morgan said. Alternatively, free college appeals more broadly to those struggling in the face of rising college costs, rather than after the fact.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Ryan Morgan, overstepping, Morgan Organizations: Free College, Finance, Harvard

☆ Walmart, Chipotle are splitting the wealth of a record stock market in a way they haven't in decades
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-31 | by ( Cheryl Winokur Munk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

For Chipotle, it's the first stock split in the company's 30-year history, and its announcement echoed Walmart's. Both are hoping, through the availability of an employee stock purchase plan and financial education, they'll get more workers to invest. Chipotle, even further out on the market chart, has shares nearing $3,000 — its stock split is to be effective June 26. ESPP versus fractional sharesEven without a stock split, employees could have already purchased shares of their company, or at least fractional shares, through a brokerage account. Company stock and financial educationSplitting a stock and having a generous ESPP can only go so far when it comes to encouraging employees to buy the company stock.

Persons: they'll, Michael Kestenbaum, Chipotle, Dan Kapinos, Clemens Kownatzki, Aalap Shah, Pearl Meyer, SoFi, Kownatzki, Larry Fink, Kestenbaum Organizations: Walmart, Companies, West Coast, Google, Pepperdine Graziadio Business, Khan Academy, Lyra Health Partners, Bank of America, Employees Locations: Aon

New Mexico's Legislature has approved a bill aimed at reducing pollution from cars and trucks by creating financial incentives for transportation fuel producers and importers to lower the carbon intensity of their products. The bill calls for a reduction in the intensity of greenhouse gas emissions for transportation fuels used in the state — of 20% by 2030 and 30% by 2040. It would require producers of high-polluting fuels to buy credits from producers and importers of low-carbon fuels. The transportation sector is the second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in New Mexico behind the oil and natural gas industry. “I am concerned about what this bill will do to the price of transportation fuel," Sen. Greg Nibert of Roswell said during Tuesday's Senate floor debate.

Persons: Michelle Lujan Grisham, State Sen, Mimi Stewart, Albuquerque, “, Sen, Greg Nibert, Roswell, Bill cosponsor, Kristina Ortez, ”, Greg Baca, Belen, we're Organizations: Democratic Gov, Department, Democratic, Chevron, New Mexicans, ” Republican Locations: California , Oregon, Washington, Mexico, New Mexico, State, Tuesday's, Taos, ”

☆ House Republicans are moving forward with a bill that would overhaul student-loan repayment and make it harder for Biden to get relief to borrowers
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Democrats introduced their own package to address student debt, but it's unlikely to advance. AdvertisementHouse Republicans are moving forward with a bill that could make it harder for student-loan borrowers to get new forms of relief. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have offered solutions to combat the student debt crisis, but there's disagreement on the best way to do so. When it comes to student-loan repayment in particular, the legislation aims to put constraints on the Education Department's ability to implement new programs. AdvertisementLimits debt relief.

Persons: —, Virginia Foxx, Foxx, Joe Biden's, Biden, overreach, Biden's, Pell Grant, Bobby Scott Organizations: Service, Democratic, Higher, Lawmakers, Education Department, GOP, Democrats, College, Public Locations: —

[1/3] South Korean students wait to take the annual College Scholastic Ability Test at a school on November 16, 2023 in Seoul, South Korea. Chung Sung-Jun/Pool via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsSEOUL, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Half a million South Koreans sat for the annual nationwide college entrance exam on Thursday, the first time in four years that the exam, often considered life-defining in the highly competitive society, has taken place free of pandemic rules. The annual exam is widely considered one of the most important tests in the country. South Korean financial markets opened an hour later than usual at 10 a.m. (0100 GMT) to ease traffic. South Koreans spent a record 26 trillion won ($19.97 billion) on private education last year, despite a declining student population, a government report showed.

Persons: Chung Sung, Kim Mi, Yoon Suk Yeol, Daewung Kim, Jimin Jung, Soo, hyang Choi, Gerry Doyle Organizations: College Scholastic, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Thomson Locations: Seoul, South Korea, Rights SEOUL, Korean

☆ Walmart is at work on a new degree-free message about getting hired at its corporate headquarters
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Bob Woods | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

"In prior years, people would pursue a cybersecurity college degree," Stomski said. At the same time, Wildavsky stressed that being dismissive about the value of a college degree is a mistake. "This is not about getting rid of college degrees," Stomski said, and she added that many of Walmart's corporate jobs will still require them. Examples of Walmart corporate roles that will not require college degrees including positions in operations and merchandising, but Stomski declined to be more specific. In August 2022, Walmart began eliminating around 200 corporate jobs as part of a restructuring effort amid a more challenging economic environment.

Persons: Terra, Stomski, We're, Lorraine Stomski, Julie Gehrki, Ben Wildavsky, Wildavsky, it's, —, OpenAI, We've, Colleen Ammerman, Walmart's Organizations: Walmart, Walmart Inc, Terra Fondriest, Bloomberg, Getty, Target, Southern New Hampshire University, University of Arizona, University of Denver, Google, IBM, Tesla, GM, Accenture, University of Virginia, College, Marines, LinkedIn, Harvard Business School Locations: Bentonville , Arkansas, workforces, U.S, Minnesota

☆ Timeline of Racial Wealth Gap
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Policies and practices that have disadvantaged Black Americans generation after generation help explain the racial wealth gap. Black veterans find it much harder to obtain benefits; one study finds Black claimants were twice as likely to have their applications queried. 1877Southern states begin enacting “Jim Crow” laws, which formalize racial segregation. The laws restrict civil liberties and limit job opportunities for Black people as employers relegate Black workers to lower-skilled roles. 1896The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Plessy v Ferguson that racial segregation is permissible.

Persons: Black, vagrancy, Union General William Tecumseh Sherman, Andrew Johnson, Jim Crow, Ferguson, Henry Ford, Woodrow Wilson, Smith, Bankhead Organizations: Civil, Union, Bureau, American Medical Association, Prudential, Companies, Black, American Federation of Labor, U.S, Supreme, Plessy, U.S . Department of Agriculture, U.S . Constitution, National Association of Real, Owners Loan Corporation, U.S . Commission, Housing Administration, Federal Housing Administration Locations: U.S, Southern, Black, Louisville , Kentucky, U.S ., Tulsa , Oklahoma, Los Angeles, Chicago, Levittown, New York’s

☆ State governors from Arizona, New Mexico seek stronger economic ties with Taiwan
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Katie Hobbs, Governor of the U.S. state of Arizona, speaks during the 2023 U.S. Business Day and Taiwan-U.S. Supply Chain Partnership Forum in Taipei, Taiwan September 19, 2023. Governors from the Southwestern United States are pursuing stronger business ties with Taiwan in hopes of attracting new foreign investments and jobs to their landlocked states. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Arizona counterpart Katie Hobbs, both Democrats, to the self-governing island of Taiwan. Hobbs said her goal was to encourage ongoing investments to make Arizona a hub for semiconductor manufacturing. She met Monday with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing executives and suppliers, visiting their plant as well as water treatment facilities.

Persons: Katie Hobbs, Michelle Lujan Grisham, Hobbs, Joe Biden, Biden, Lujan Grisham, Cable –, Republican —, Gretchen Whitmer, Eric Holcomb Organizations: Business, U.S, Supply Chain Partnership, Governors, Southwestern, Trade, Gov, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, Democratic, Congress, Tuesday, America, General, — Democratic, Republican, Republican Indiana Gov, Solar Technologies, U.S . Department of Energy Locations: U.S ., Arizona, Taiwan, Taipei, Southwestern United States, New Mexico, U.S, Santa Teresa , New Mexico, Mexico, Beijing, Michigan, Japan, Singapore, Albuquerque , New Mexico, South Korea

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Governors from the Southwestern United States are pursuing stronger business ties with Taiwan in hopes of attracting new foreign investments and jobs to their landlocked states. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Arizona counterpart Katie Hobbs, both Democrats, to the self-governing island of Taiwan. Hobbs said her goal was to encourage ongoing investments to make Arizona a hub for semiconductor manufacturing. She met Monday with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. executives and suppliers, visiting their plant as well as water treatment facilities. At a business conference in Taipei on Tuesday, Lujan Grisham urged entrepreneurs and leaders to consider investment opportunities in her home state, touting a workforce with access to subsidized child care and tuition-free college.

Persons: Michelle Lujan Grisham, Katie Hobbs, Hobbs, Joe Biden, Biden, Lujan Grisham, Cable –, Republican —, Gretchen Whitmer, Eric Holcomb, ___ Tang Organizations: SANTA FE, — Governors, Southwestern, Trade, Gov, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, Congress, Tuesday, U.S, America, General, — Democratic, Republican, Republican Indiana Gov, Solar Technologies, U.S . Department of Energy Locations: SANTA, Southwestern United States, Taiwan, New Mexico, Arizona, U.S, Taipei, Santa Teresa , New Mexico, Mexico, Beijing, Michigan, Japan, Singapore, Albuquerque , New Mexico, South Korea, Phoenix

☆ The Great College Pricing Sham
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( James S. Murphy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

I use quotation marks, because merit aid is granted to half the students at public colleges and 84% at private colleges. Today the average merit-aid discount at private colleges is $23,000 — leaving the student to cover the remaining $30,000 or $40,000. At four-year public colleges, tuition now accounts for 52% of operational revenue, versus 48% from state funding. To make college more accessible, we need to make greater public investments — at both the state and federal levels — in higher education. James S. Murphy is a higher education policy analyst at Education Reform Now.

Persons: Joe Biden, YouGov, Gen, Gen Zers, You'll, Pell Grant, Dominique Baker, —, Getty, Ben Sasse, who's, Sasse, David Feldman, William & Mary, Ford, Feldman, they're, Sandy Baum, It's, There's, Baum, They're, Josh Shapiro, Spencer Cox, shouldn't, James S, Murphy Organizations: Insider, Harvard, of California, Southern Methodist University, Ivy League, U.S . News, Honda, Porsche, University of Florida, McKinsey & Company, University of Oklahoma, University of Kentucky, Ford, Apple, Fordham, Appalachian, William &, Technology, West Virginia University, WVU, Urban Institute, Google, Reform, Twitter Locations: United States, Italian, Appalachian State, America, Pennsylvania, Utah

☆ Which Republicans can challenge Trump? Here's what the money says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-22 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —For any Republican presidential candidate not named Donald Trump, making the first primary debate on August 23 in Milwaukee is an essential obstacle to overcome. The Republican National Committee set minimum viability requirements that numerous candidates are having trouble meeting. But the FEC – which is evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans – often struggles to agree on enforcement actions. But that perhaps is not surprising – given how large Trump, his former boss-turned-nemesis, looms over the hard-core Republican base. How is Trump making money these days?

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, Fredreka Schouten, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez’s, “, ”, Doug Burgum, Burgum, Asa Hutchinson, Vivek Ramaswamy, I’ve, Republicans –, Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, Ramaswamy –, he’s, hasn’t, ” Trump, Christie, Mike Pence, Pence, Hutchinson, Will Hurd, We’ve, can’t, Steve Contorno, Trump’s, WOLF, You’ve, Melania, Melania Trump, Biden, Joe Biden, That’s, Barack Obama, I’m, David Wright suss, David, Alex Leeds Matthews, –, it’s Organizations: CNN, Fox News, Republican National Committee, Trump, Miami Mayor, GOP, “ Francis Free, North Dakota Gov, Former Arkansas Gov, Federal, Commission, Republicans, Florida Gov, New, New Jersey Gov, Politico, White, Democratic, DNC, Biden Locations: Milwaukee, –, Florida, New Jersey, Wisconsin

☆ The Supreme Court justices paid an average of $42,539 to go to college. Today, they'd have to pay around $320,531.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Sarah Al-Arshani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Supreme Court struck down Biden's student loan forgiveness plan. Student loan payments will likely resume in October. For the justices behind the decision, the cost of an undergraduate degree was much cheaper when they were in school. According to EDI, there was a 2,807% increase in the average student loan debt at graduation between 1970 and 2021 before adjusting for inflation. Student loan borrowers gathered at the Supreme Court today to tell the court that student loan relief is legal on January 2, 2023.

Persons: —, Joe Biden's, Biden, Clarence Thomas, Wally McNamee, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, John Roberts, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Roberts, Jackson, Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett, Larry French, Thomas, Gorsuch Organizations: Service, Republicans, White, Education Data Initiative, The College of, Princeton University, Harvard, Yale, Columbia University, Rhodes College, Associated Press, AP

☆ Your Child Picked a College! Tee Up Your 529 Plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Laura Saunders | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan isn’t the only change coming for student loan borrowers. His plan also fundamentally changes how loans will be repaid, turning many into, essentially, free college grants. This month kicked off with college decision day, the May 1 deadline for many high-school seniors to pick a school. It should also prompt parents to plan withdrawals from so-called 529 college-savings plans. “There’s so much focus on putting dollars into 529 plans that people forget about taking the money out—and parents procrastinate because they’re busy,” says Mary Morris , chief executive of Virginia529, which recently held $86 billion for savers.

☆ Inside Nike: Sources share claims of sexism, cheating, abuse at the world's wokest brand
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Joshua Hunt | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +51 min

The conservative blowback came as no surprise to Parker, who told Nike's board of directors to expect some short-term backlash. In late 2014, the BBC sent a film crew to Portland to interview several former Oregon Project employees. "He would be at the side of the track calling out runners' splits but wouldn't call Kara's out," Adam Goucher told me. When people asked why she left the Oregon Project, she said it was a "personal decision." "I don't think it has anything to do with who the CEO is," Goucher told me.

☆ 3 reasons student-loan borrowers could start taking on more debt once Biden's plan to lower monthly payments goes into effect
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Biden released a plan in August to reform income-driven repayment plans for student-loan borrowers. It also projected the more generous plan would lead to increased borrowing given the lower cost to take on debt. While Democratic lawmakers lauded the proposed improvements to IDR plans, Republican lawmakers criticized the proposal, along with its potential cost. Insider has previously reported that Biden's IDR reforms could keep borrowers in the same repayment cycle if it isn't implemented properly. "Under current IDR plans, most borrowers can expect to repay some or all their debt," the analysis said.

☆ Free education, equal rights for unmarried women among proposals to boost China's fertility
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Farah Master | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Tingshu WangHONG KONG, March 2 (Reuters) - Free college education and equal rights for unmarried women are among proposals being urged by members of China’s top political advisory body to boost the country's birth rate after its population fell last year for the first time in six decades. The proposals come ahead of the upcoming Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which kicks off on March 4. China should remove restrictions on marital status used to register newborns, allowing unmarried women to enjoy fertility services like married women do, Xie Wenmin, a member of China's top political advisory body, told the state-backed Global Times this week. Even after authorities scrapped the rule, high childcare and education costs are cited as a key reason for having fewer children. Currently IVF and egg freezing in China are banned for unmarried women.

☆ The Supreme Court justices deciding whether to axe Biden's student loan relief program paid an average of $42,539 to go to college. Today, they'd have to pay around $320,531.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Sarah Al-Arshani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments for Biden's student debt relief on Tuesday. The cost of getting an undergraduate degree was significantly cheaper when they graduated than now. When Roberts graduated in 1979, it cost $21,400; in 1992 when Jackson earned her undergraduate degree, it would have cost $75,360. When Roberts graduated in 1979, it cost $21,400; in 1992 when Jackson earned her undergraduate degree, it would have cost $75,360. Student loan borrowers gathered at the Supreme Court today to tell the court that student loan relief is legal on January 2, 2023.

☆ Chipotle seeks to hire 15,000 restaurant workers ahead of busy spring months
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Amelia Lucas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A "Now Hiring" sign is displayed in front of a Chipotle restaurant on October 07, 2022 in Washington, DC. Chipotle Mexican Grill is seeking to hire 15,000 restaurant workers ahead of its busiest time of the year, which runs from March to May. In recent months, restaurants have found it easier to attract and retain workers, a reversal after the labor crunch that ensued after pandemic lockdowns. And while layoffs have hit white-collar workers, primarily in the tech industry, low-wage retail and restaurant workers haven't faced any large-scale cuts. To attract and retain workers, the company offers benefits like free meals, tuition reimbursement, debt-free college degrees, access to mental health care and an all-crew bonus worth an extra month's pay each year.

☆ Walmart raises minimum wage as retail labor market remains tight
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Melissa Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Walmart said Tuesday it is raising its minimum wage for store employees to $14 an hour, representing a roughly 17% jump for the workers who stock shelves and cater to customers. Starting in early March, store employees will make between $14 and $19 an hour. About 340,000 store employees will get a raise because of the move, Hatfield said. Some of those pay increases will also go toward store employees who work in parts of the country where the labor market is more competitive, the company said. Target , for instance, announced in 2017 it would gradually raise its minimum wage and reached $15 an hour in July 2020.

☆ A top Republican says Biden's proposals to make monthly student-loan payments cheaper are a 'backdoor' for his 'radical free college agenda'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Biden administration announced new regulations to improve income-driven repayment plans. The changes are meant to make payments cheaper, and "create faster pathways to forgiveness," according to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona. Foxx has been an outspoken opponent of Biden's broad student loan forgiveness and other pandemic-era debt-relief measures. Under IDR, borrowers are meant to make monthly payments based on their incomes, with eventual loan forgiveness after at least 20 years of payments. "These plans will significantly cut monthly loan payments and it's part of a real transformation of the student loan system."

☆ Starbucks is urged to keep its bathrooms open to everyone, not just paying customers
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Stephanie Stacey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The American Restroom Association has called on Starbucks to keep its restrooms open to all. A Starbucks spokesperson told The Guardian that its policy hadn't changed, but the American Restroom Association said that some stores were restricting their bathrooms to paying customers. Kevin Johnson, CEO of Starbucks at the time, apologized and closed all Starbucks stores in the US for a entire day so staff could attend anti-bias training. In May 2018, Starbucks announced that it would allow everyone — including people who hadn't purchased anything — to use its bathrooms "100% of the time." Starbucks and the American Restroom Association did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Insider.

☆ Fidelity, ForUsAll now offering 401(k) investors access to cryptocurrency
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Retirement savers in some 401(k) plans are starting to get access to cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. Fidelity Investments, the largest provider of 401(k) plans by total assets, began offering a Digital Assets Account to clients this fall, a spokesperson confirmed. Employers sponsoring a 401(k) plan through Fidelity can choose to offer the account to workers, allowing them to allocate a share of their savings to bitcoin. For its part, ForUsAll, a plan administrator geared toward startups and small businesses, in September also rolled out crypto to 401(k) savers, said David Ramirez, the company's CEO. ForUsAll intends to add five more in the coming weeks, said Ramirez, who declined to disclose which ones.

☆ Biden appeals to young voters in U.S. West as midterms near
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on "student debt relief" during a campaign stop at Central New Mexico Community College (CNM) Student Resource Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S., November 3, 2022. Biden and other Democratic speakers made no mention of high consumer prices that analysts say are overshadowing abortion and other social issues in the election. Biden heads to California on Thursday evening and Illinois on Friday before traveling to Pennsylvania on Saturday for a rally with former President Barack Obama. He plans to contrast his economic plan with a Republican push to roll back loan forgiveness, the White House said. Opposition parties historically fare better in midterm elections, providing a balance for new presidents in the second half of their terms.

☆ Fidelity is the latest employer to offer free college education to workers
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Despite growing economic uncertainty, employers are still waging a war for talent, and employees are coming out ahead. Now, more businesses are expanding their benefit offerings with free college programs to attract and retain workers. Most recently, Fidelity Investments said it will offer fully funded undergraduate degrees to 18,000 employees, including entry-level customer service phone representatives. Roughly 38,000 Citi front-line consumer banking employees are eligible for its education benefits program, including free college. Now, 48% of employers said they offer undergraduate or graduate tuition assistance as a benefit, according to that survey.

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