On May 22, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer unveiled a new plan to reform the state’s higher education system in an effort to raise standards and make SUNY more competitive with other well-regarded public universities, like University of California and University of Michigan. Spitzer has created a Higher Education Commission, headed by former Cornell University President Hunter Rawlings, which will make recommendations on how to boost quality and revenue while improving access to the largest university system in the nation. Though some fear the commission’s recommendations may lead to higher tuition costs and a slew of campus closings, Spitzer said he is hoping to secure funding through other means. One fundraising avenue is, however, definitely out of commission. Spitzer, along with Attorney General Edward Cuomo, signed a bill last Thursday protecting students and their families from abuses by the student loan industry. The Student Lending Accountability, Transparency and Enforcement (SLATE) Act prohibits universities and their employees from accepting any rewards from lenders in exchange for business. Also on Thursday,

Columbia University reached a settlement requiring them to pay $1.1 million into a fund to educate high school students and their parents about the financial aid industry after it was discovered that one of the school’s financial aid directors, David Charlow, was promoting a student loan company in which he held $100,000 or more in stock. We guess SUNY will just need to find another way to accept corporate kickbacks to fund improvements.