The President

CTI senior Heather Ely gave President Bill Clinton some food for thought. On Aug. 10 when the president visited DePaul to introduce a new federal program for financial aid, Ely took part in a five-person panel discussion that illuminated the plan.

During the conversation, the information systems major pointed out that some students, including herself, are dependent upon bank loans rather than federal student loans. The president promised to take that fact into consideration.

“You’ve actually given me something to go back and look into,” replied Clinton.

The president cited availability of education as the key to success. “Twenty years ago, college graduates earned about 40 percent more than high school graduates. In the new information economy, the gap is almost doubled. If we value opportunity for all, as we see we do here in America, we have to provide all Americans access to opportunity, and that means access to college.”

The panel discussion played out in front of an audience of approximately 500 at the Stuart Center on the Lincoln Park Campus and also included John Schoultz, DePaul’s financial aid director; Alicia Buie, a master’s candidate in the School of Education; and Pam McNeil, a mother of three college-bound students.

The discussion unveiled new initiatives that will decrease interest rates for Direct Student Loan recipients who pay on time and forgive loans for graduates who become teachers in high-risk areas. The president also urged Congress to pass the College Opportunity Tax Cut for middle-class families.

He spoke with the Rev. John P. Minogue, C.M., DePaul’s president, by telephone before the presentation. At the time, Minogue was meeting with the Thai Secretary of Education in Bangkok, negotiating an agreement to establish another international DePaul program.

Ely had learned two days before Clinton’s visit that she was a candidate to be a part of the panel discussion. “I was under the initial impression that I would be among several students on the panel,” she says. But in fact, they were looking for only one student representative.

After a series of phone interviews by DePaul and White House personnel, Ely was selected as the final candidate. “I was very excited. It almost felt like a dream. It’s not very often that an average person like myself is given such a great opportunity,” she says. “The mere idea of being able to listen to the most powerful man in the world and hear him speak about issues that relate so closely to my life is amazing.”

In addition to Clinton, U.S. Representative Rod Blagojevich also addressed the audience of faculty, staff, administrators and students.