The following are important insights on this crucial matter from Peter Wood, who, as a result of his years as a top administrator at Boson University, knows of what he speaks:
Next to the housing industry, higher education may be the most credit-dependent segment of the American economy. College expenses are notoriously the second highest item after the home mortgage in the lifetime budget of many American families. And, with the exceptions of a few very wealthy institutions, colleges and universities are deeply dependent on the flow of borrowed money in the form of student loans. If the current credit crisis continues, with radically diminished liquidity on the part of lenders, students will have a much harder time getting loans and many colleges and universities will be faced with insolvency. An air of disbelieving, however, has settled over the academy. Hardly anyone is talking about the peril, let alone considering what might be done to stave it off.