There is an accreditation process for colleges in the U.S. and I believe that the Pell Grant is only awarded to those attending accredited institutions. I know that only those without a Bachelor degree already qualify for a Pell.
For years, there has been this disconnect between education and career development within the university system. While the goal of a vocational or technical college is to give someone job skills, the goal of a university is education and education alone. However, the reason for the additional money for the Pell Grant and other programs (a lot of money is being designated toward short certificate programs) is to develop our workforce here in the U.S. The problem is, that if an institution's goal has nothing to do with workforce development, then why should it receive such funding? Of course, if one wants to be a teacher, doctor, therapist, etc., those are 4+ year programs. Where we need more skilled people is in the sciences. Outsourcing of certain jobs is directly related to a lack of qualified people here when it comes to certain industries. That is not saying that people should be pushed into certain programs where they have no aptitude. But for those who demonstrate the ability, the funding should be there for their education.
What we are seeing now in the culture of academia is a push to artificially inflate grades. I know that when I worked as a teaching assistant, there was definitely pressure to do this, especially for general degree requirement courses. Those who resisted were not awarded any accolades for doing so, though it is only ethical to fail someone who is not capable of grasping the material.
All and all, college is what you, the student, make of it. I have met so many people who went through school and never got a job in what they went to school for. There needs to be more emphasis on school for the purpose of developing marketable workplace skills. So many people I know went through school believing that the classroom experience alone would do this. It will not. One needs to use their time in college to get on-the-job experience also, whether it is through work study jobs, an internship, or the unique networking opportunities.
When I went for my BA, there was little Pell Grant money to be had. I think I received $175 total from the Pell Grant program. I received some assistance from DVR, a state program for people with disabilities, but I also worked hard for scholarships. My cousin, whose parents never married but live together, pulling in quite a lot of money between the two of them, is getting her tuition covered entirely by the Pell Grant. Why? Because she is seen as the daughter of a single mother (even though my aunt and her boyfriend have lived together for 20+ years and likely make about $100,000 per year or better between the two of them). Is that right? Hell no! But Wisconsin doesn't have common law marriage, so that is how she qualifies. (I should mention that she was first awarded the Pell prior to Obama getting elected).
Honestly though, we need to provide the added funds for schooling, and I can say from going through the displaced worker program since being laid off in October that more people are being directed to enter a 12 week certificate program or a technical college program than those who are encouraged toward a four year program. What I have been told is that the funding is there already for the short, certificate programs, but there is a waiting list for funding for degree programs. I have seen people at these displaced worker meetings where I have to wonder how they ever held a job in the first place, and it disgusts me. There was one guy who was falling on the floor drunk. He won't last in this program. There are some people who really seem like they don't want to work. And then there are a few, like me, who just want to work in their field, but now realize that there are few jobs to be had in their designated field at the moment, so despite having training and experience, they have to seek new careers. (I majored in communications, my first job out of college was for a newspaper... I have worked within the publishing industry-newspapers and magazines-a field that has been largely downsized, outsourced and consolidated as people don't want to spend their leisure time reading anymore... but I digress...)
I don't qualify for the Pell, but do qualify for funding through the displaced worker program to get additional schooling so that I might teach Communications for the Technical College system in Wisconsin on a full-time basis. Anyway, I am thankful for that, since I don't see things getting drastically better with this economy until the baby-boomers start to retire. Then, we are in for quite a change, because companies will be struggling to fill all the jobs that will be vacated (that is if the majority of baby-boomers retire when they hit age 65, which I personally think they will based on the dynamics of their generation).
I look at other developed nations that offer college (which usually refers to a vocational school) free of charge, and think that is the way it should be here. Yes, there are degree mills out there, and they shouldn't be accredited institutions (I don't think that many of them are), but by and large, getting an education is a good thing, but it is what the student makes of it. If you squeak by, while passing your classes, get a degree but have earned nothing in the way of work experience, you will find out that your education was wasted.
As for the pressure to inflate grades, if you the student find that you have an instructor who is way too easy or isn't teaching you what the class is supposed to teach, you need to speak up on your teacher evaluation forms. Action is taken based on student feedback.
BTW, U.S. News and World Report ranks colleges and universities on a variety of programs, largely based on the employability of those who went through certain programs.
