Congress Axes a Lifeline for Small Colleges

Liberal arts schools are about to take a hit to their bottom line.
Photographer: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images
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The demise of a long-standing college loan program will hit the bottom line at small colleges and standalone law schools especially hard, a new report shows.

The Perkins Loan program, the U.S. government’s oldest student aid program, expired two weeks ago, leaving small schools that depend on tuition without a lifeline. Expect “greater pressure on university financial aid budgets and enrollment volatility” at those institutions, said the report, published on Thursday by Moody's, the credit rating agency.