Just last year, tuition and fees at four-year public colleges rose 6.5 percent. Unfortunately, this continues a decades-long trend of rising college costs, even during periods of economic unease and low inflation. Escalating prices have also coincided with stagnation in need-based financial aid availability, the result of which has been mounting levels of student debt for low and middle-income families. In this context, there has been greater reliance on savings, particularly through 529 college savings plans, in order to increase college affordability and reduce debt. But there is also an emerging body of research linking savings to important educational and behavioral benefits.

The Obama Administration has indicated that saving, broadly, will help lay a new and sustainable foundation for economic growth, and that saving for college in particular can help America regain its global education lead. How can college savings plans be reformed to help achieve these goals, particularly for low and moderate income families? What has the Obama Administration learned from its recent review of 529 plans? How are states, through their 529 plans, helping families combat the rising cost of higher education? And how are families actually saving for college, given the current economy?

The New America Foundation's College Savings Initiative convened experts from across the policy spectrum on November 5th, 2009 for a discussion of these questions and more.

Scott Buchanan of Sallie Mae kicked off the discussion with a look at some of the more noteworthy findings from “How America Saves for College,” a recent poll by Gallup and Sallie Mae.

Ilyana Kuziemko, Deputy Assistant Secretary Microeconomic Analysis at the U.S. Treasury Department, followed with a keynote address on the Obama Administration’s recent assessment of 529 college savings plans, and its policy priorities on incentivizing college savings.

Dan Ebersole, State Treasurer of Georgia, then gave perspective on what is currently being done on the state policy level to help more families save for college, and proposed reforms that could take place on the federal and state level to make 529 plans a useful tool for more families.

Finally, Margaret Clancy, Director of the College Savings Initiative at the Center for Social Development at Washington University in St. Louis, discussed state policy reforms and some new research linking savings and assets with college completion.

Video of this event is available above on this page.