host: katie reilly covers national news and education issues for time magazine. she has a new feature piece in time that has a headline, "applying to college was never easy for most students but the pandemic made it impossible." welcome to washington journal. guest: thank you for having me. host: what caused you to focus on the lost senior class? guest: reporting started when it became clear that college enrollment declined significantly. the goal was to figure out why and how the pandemic was affecting current high school seniors as they applied for college or decided whether they would apply to college. i a lot of students were facing

extra challenges, stresses this year as they apply to college. applying to college is never easy, even in a difficult year but the pandemic upended the pathway to college. especially for those hit hardest by covid-19 and the economic crisis. freshman enrollment fell significantly, a record 13% across-the-board. it felt even more at the community college. more than 20%. experts are worried about signs of that trend repeating itself this fall. which could worsen gaps in college access. since of color, low-income students and first-generation college goers. host: for our viewers, some data and information on what she was talking about. estimates from the census bureau conducted biweekly since august of last year, anywhere from 7.7 million to 10 million adults

cancel plans of post secondary classes because of financial constrained. the number of high school graduate who went immediately onto college declined 6.8% compared the previous year. what have high school students, the ones you talk to, -- talked to, what have they been doing to apply to colleges? or to stay current with those applications? guest: for soon to did apply to college, they did so against immense obstacles. many were dealing with a loss of height relative, many of them took on extra responsible this at home. caregiving roles for utterly siblings -- for elders or

siblings. many of them started working full-time jobs to help their family. i talked to a student in college, she described the challenge of staying up until 1:00, poring over financial aid -- tax forms to fill out financial aid, filling out applications for colors than working on applications for rental assistance. her parents lost work and they were worried about rent payments. she speaks english and her parents do not so this became her responsibility. to communicate with the landlord. above and beyond that challenges of this typical senior year. a lot of since facing these challenges decided the commitment of a two year or four year degree was not feasible.

maybe their families needed a more at home, the need to contribute financially to their family. they decided not to apply this year. host: our guest is writing about how difficult the procedure of applying to college has become during the pandemic. we welcome calls and comments, here is how we are breaking down the lines. if you are applying to college, the line is (202) 748-8000. if you're a college student or parent of a college student (202) 748-8001. for all others (202) 748-8002. you're right about -- you write about guidance counselors. "if all stew erica clark to help reverse that trend. she is a guidance counselor

in atlanta, shepherding 90 seniors through college applications. she cannot bolster its out of class arrest him stop by her office anymore. she tries to gauge how they are feeling over soup and she has lost countless nights of sleep worrying. she checked out one student on the job at footlocker to get her to complete a missing form." guest: i talked to several counselors who described the links they went through resumes where they are. for erica clark that involved driving to footlocker, to get her to complete a form on the spot. counselors across-the-board found it more difficult to meet students, texting them, calling them, this victim -- visiting them at the home. some had completion events to

have a socially distanced event to complete those forms. and come up with a college plan. across-the-board, counselors were dealing with an extra challenge. there were not able to pull a student out of the class, start them in the hallway. on the other end of that, even before the pandemic there were not enough counselors. some do not have a counselor at all. many were outnumbered. while that is difficult in a normal year, it becomes or challenging -- more challenging when they are not in person and they are trying to communicate entirely over email or text message. host: how have colleges and universities responded? have any responded to the economically disadvantaged kids applying? what have colleges done?

guest: i talk to leaders at the state university of new york, they saw a drop off in applications this year. particularly among students of color. to try to combat that, they started an outreach program targeted at underrepresented high school students. they waved application fees for all low income students automatically. they launched a freak online job-training and college prep program for low income new yorkers. hopefully being more proactive about reaching out to stews, lifting the barriers that might have prevented them from applying. it remains to see how effective that was. we will know more when we look at what their freshman class looks like for fall 2021. that is an example of how universities are responding. i talked to the leader of compton college in california, high community college with

primarily black and latino students. they saw a significant drop off in enrollment. about 25% compared to the previous year. they started reaching out to students who were previously enrolled and withdrew. to try to offer more financial aid and give them the support. find out why they took time off. and what support they needed. they also boosted the relationship with high schools in the area to hopefully connect more directly. host: people can read the article at time.com. it also in the magazine, the cover page is, "the last year." i believe that is a student you talk to, what drew you to her? guest: twyla spoke to someone of the challenges that students were facing. she was furloughed from her job when the pandemic hit.

she burned through much of the money that she was saving for college and became worried about affordability. she was learning remotely and did not have as much one-on-one time with guidance counselors. and did not know her teachers well. she missed out on seasons of varsity track and cross-country. she did not get to take the sat or act like many students. at one point she considered whether it would be worth to go to college at this time or made sense to wait and continue working. she did apply to college, she'll be going to the university of new york in the fall and is excited. she became indicative of the challenges that students are facing this year. host: i think it's important to point out what you write about in the magazine, what that loss means. you're right that, "students in

low income households were more likely to cancel plans to take college classes than those in high income classes. which is why experts were that students who are foregoing colors are the ones who need higher education the most. americans with just a high school diploma face higher rates of unemployment and turn $7,300 less each year than those with an associates or bachelors degree." do those figures surprise you? guest: this disproportionately affected low income students and students of color. because higher education is an important tool for economic mobility, it has experts worried that those who are foregoing college education are the same students who might most benefit from getting that degree. for all of the recent you mentioned, schools feel it is important for them to try to

target them. the state university of new york, i spoke with someone there, he says it feels like a moral obligation for universities to respond and recruit low income students who are not attending college now. in an ideal world, higher education serves ulcers, not just those from higher income families, parents who have a college education, if those suits are not attending college in higher numbers, it hurts them and their future options, earning potential. it hurts the university system which relies on student enrollment and tuition for their revenue. it hurts society at large. host: if you are a student applying to colleges, we would like to hear from you in particular (202) 748-8000. students, college scenes and parents that line is (202) 748-8001.

all others (202) 748-8002. katie reilly is our guest with time magazine. we will go to claudia, a student in miami. caller: good morning. i am a veteran college student. thank you for the teachers and staff helping us, through the process of covid. i want to say, i agree with what the lady was saying that being uneducated contributes more to inequality. it is really -- to hear about the social injustices and issues that we have in the united states.

if we all had more of an opportunity, especially those in underserved communities to have higher education we would a different -- be a different society. this is not about socialism, this is about giving people a chance to try and have a better opportunity. if you want to talk about people, let's treat people like people, let's do that. that's all, thank you. host: okay claudia. any thoughts? guest: thank you so much for the call. i heard a similar sentiments about the motivation to go to college, knowing that it would be a better opportunity for themselves and families. especially first generation college goers whose parents did not have the opportunity.

in the face of obstacles this year, that was a motivating factor. knowing the difference i could make. host: as a parent who is glad to not have to fill out the fafsa, interesting to read about the free application for financial student aid applications declined. you what are some saying that this is the canary in the coal mine. why is this an indicator? guest: the fafsa completion rate being down this year was a real concern for experts who track college access. it is one of the first indicators of what the fall 2021 freshman class might look like. kim cook called it the canary in the coal mine because it is in indicator of if students will enroll. if they're not completing the form, they might not get the aid

they need. even if they get accepted to college. seeing those numbers fall, especially in high numbers, hospitals surveyed low-income zunes and students of color is reinforcing that this is disproportionately affecting those communities andpollution.

it is just over three and a half hours. >> subcommittee on energy will come to order. it's holding a hearing entitled the future ask driving privatization of the transportation sector due to the covid-19 public health emergency and today's hearing is being held remotely. all members and witnesses will be participating via videoconferencing.