Congressional Republicans have asked 56 private universities, each with endowments exceeding $1 billion, for information about the use of that money. “We manage our costs to stay true to our commitment to students.”Universities maintain endowments, a collection of tax-exempt donations and investments, to pay for salaries, research, financial aid and other expenses. The more money schools devote to financial aid for low-income students, the lower their tax burden. Schneider said the policy could generate $5.2 billion that could be used for federal student aid programs or to help students at community colleges. “Taxpayers are subsidizing rich students at rich universities.”The hearing comes as colleges are experiencing declines in the value of their endowments.

Source: Washington Post September 13, 2016 18:24 UTC