U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will join Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, Arizona State University President Michael Crow, and 350 New York area Starbucks employees and their families for a discussion regarding the unique role business can play in addressing the issue of college affordability and access at 10:45 a.m. on Monday, June 16, at the Times Center in New York City.
Schultz and Crow will announce an innovative approach and partnership between their organizations, called the Starbucks College Achievement Plan, to help employees complete their bachelor’s degree with full tuition reimbursement.
Duncan will address the challenges facing Americans who are eager to get a degree but are faced with the barriers of both escalating costs and challenging access and how public-private partnerships such as the Starbucks College Achievement Plan can be part of the solution, along with other programs across the country. Last week, President Obama announced a series of actions that will further lift the burden of crushing student loan debt, including a Presidential Memorandum that will allow an additional 5 million borrowers with federal student loans to cap their monthly payments at just 10 percent of their income.