EDUCATION

Cosponsored College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 (enacted) , which makes undergraduate education more affordable and more accessible to more Georgia students. The elimination of excess taxpayer subsidies to student loan lenders provided for by the Act makes possible:

An incremental reduction of 50% in interest rates on subsidized student loans between now and July, 2011
An 25% increase of the maximum available Pell Grant scholarship in 2012, from $4050 to $5400
Guaranteed tuition assistance in the form of "TEACH" grants to talented college students committed to teaching in impoverished communities and/or in curriculum areas with high demand
Loan forgiveness programs for civil servants, educators and military servicemen and women
The promotion of grant support for first-generation and low-income undergraduate students by all levels of government and charitable organizations
A commitment of the Secretary of Education to invest over $500 million into the nation's academic institutions serving minorities and underrepresented groups over a period of five years

Introduced bipartisan Civil Rights Act of 1964 Commemorative Coin Act (referred to Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs) , authorizing the sale of $1 coin commemorating the 1964 Act's passage and establishing that the expected $3.5 million proceeds will be used to support the United Negro College Fund's (UNCF) scholarship and internship programs
Cosponsored Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act of 2008 (enacted) , which creates additional protections to ensure uninterrupted access to student loan funding. In addition to increasing overall the overall loan limit for the duration of an undergraduate education to $31,000 for dependent and $57,500 for independent college students, the Act also provides for:

A repayment period extension from 60 days after loan disbursement, to a six-month deferment option for parents borrowing PLUS loans on behalf of their children
A limited exception for mortgage and medical expense-related debt in order for parents to successfully apply for student loan funding on behalf of their children
The authority of the Secretary of Education to buffer last resort lenders with federal government monies to ensure the availability of capital to create new loans upon a determination of inadequate funding

Passed Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007, overturning prior Bush Administration funding cuts (enacted) , which authorizes increased funding in excess of $23 billion over the next five fiscal years; expands the pool of eligible students to those from families slightly above the poverty level, while continuing to give priority to those at or below; and ensuring the quality of the program's teachers by mandating that at least half must have obtained undergraduate or graduate-level credentials in childhood education by 2013
Leads the call to increase fiscal year funding for YouthBuild, a program that helps at-risk, low-income teens and young adults obtain a high school education and become valuable members of their communities, as well as assists communities in crime prevention, education and economic development. Cosponsored the YouthBuild Support letter urging an increase of funding from $50 to $100 million for Fiscal Year 2009.
Appropriated over $6 million to support academic programming at District 5 colleges and universities during Fiscal Years 2006 to 2008, including $2.2 million for the Morehouse College Minority Energy Science Research and Education Program (FY 2008), and $100,000 for the Georgia State University Science Park (FY 2007)

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