U.S. Under Secretary of Education Martha Kanter will discuss the Obama Administration’s initiatives to increase college access, affordability, quality and completion for all learners in remarks at the 31st annual conference of the Council for Opportunity in Education at 8:00 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 7, in New York City. She will highlight the role TRIO programs play in helping various student populations – including first-generation college goers, students with disabilities, veterans of the U.S. Armed forces, as well as low-income and other underrepresented students – to fulfill their college and career aspirations. Kanter also will discuss the significance of the Pell Grant program, which is marking its 40th anniversary this year, and has helped some 60 million students to afford a college education since its inception in 1972.
Kanter will answer questions from the audience following her remarks. The conference theme is “Educational Achievement: America’s Bottom Line.”