ROCK ISLAND, IL (06/08/2012)(readMedia)-- Twenty-one Augustana College students traveled to Greece for two weeks at the end of May and beginning of June, following a spring term course on ancient Greek culture. While in Greece the students visited Athens, Mykonos, Mycenae, Olympia, Delphi and Corinth.

The students from your area that went on this trip include :

Kylie Koger, a sophomore from Davenport, Iowa, majoring in classics.

Ryan Kopatich, a senior from Davenport, Iowa, majoring in psychology.

Crystina Mayfield, a senior from Coal Valley, Ill., majoring in French, Africana studies, and classics.

At Augustana, students choosing to study abroad can receive financial support from the college thanks to a program launched in 2009 called Augie Choice. Focused on advancing student learning in the liberal arts, Augie Choice grants students in their junior year or beyond the opportunity to receive a one-time grant of $2,000 to offset the expenses of study abroad, an internship or research project. Augie Choice funding, which recently surpassed the $1.4-million milestone, is a visible symbol of the college's commitment to experiential learning as a way of preparing students to stand out among their peers.

About Augustana: Founded in 1860 and situated on a 115-acre campus near the Mississippi River, Augustana College is a private, liberal arts institution affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The college enrolls 2,500 students from diverse geographic, social, ethnic and religious backgrounds and offers nearly 90 majors and related areas of study. Augustana employs 182 full-time faculty and has a student-faculty ratio of 12:1. Augustana continues to do what it has always done: challenge and prepare students for lives of leadership and service in our complex, ever-changing world.

Senate took first steps toward Farm Bill passage this week; Braley and Vilsack seek feedback from Iowans  

Washington, DC - On Monday, June 11^th, 2012, Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) will join US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack for a pair of listening sessions in Maquoketa and Cedar Rapids focused on the Food, Farm and Jobs Bill pending before Congress.

Just this week, the US Senate took the first steps toward passing the Food, Farm and Jobs Bill.

For past month, Braley has hosted listening sessions on the Food, Farm and Jobs Bill in communities across eastern Iowa, including in Grinnell, Independence, Manchester, Marengo, Marshalltown, Strawberry Point, Toledo, and Vinton.

Monday's events are free and open to the public.

Monday June 11^th, 2012

10:45am               Maquoketa Food, Farm and Jobs Bill Listening Session

Huntsville Interpretive Center

18670 63^rd St.

Maquoketa, Iowa

3:00pm                 Cedar Rapids Food, Farm and Jobs Bill Listening Session

Kirkwood Community College

Iowa Hall (Rooms A, B, C and D)

6301 Kirkwood Blvd. SW

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

By: Rep. Bruce Braley

I worked hard to put myself through college and law school 30 years ago, spending my summers with the Poweshiek County Roads department repairing roads and bridges, waiting tables, and tending bar.  But I couldn't have made it through school without the help of low-interest federal student loans.

When my daughter headed off to Iowa State a few years ago, it again brought home how much student loan interest rates have increased since my college days.

And college students are facing a big challenge in just a few weeks.  Unless Congress acts by July 1^st, interest rates on federally subsidized student loans will double from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent.  This drastic increase would mean a student taking out the maximum Stafford student loan of $23,000 would pay a whopping $11,000 more in interest over the 20 year repayment period of the loan.

In January, I introduced legislation to stop the student loan increase and keep interest rates at 3.4 percent.  But the bill hasn't moved forward because Washington politicians are using the issue to score political points rather than help middle class families.

You'd think that keeping the college dream within reach of more people would be a goal that could attract wide support from both sides of the aisle.  Yet the debate over this important issue has devolved into all-too-typical partisan finger-pointing.

A college degree is the ticket to job opportunities in our increasingly knowledge-based economy.  Yet increasingly, the dream is too expensive.  It's no secret that the cost of college in Iowa has dramatically increased in recent years.  The skyrocketing costs have far outpaced inflation and left graduates with mountains of debt.  Since 2000, tuition at Iowa's public universities has increased by 83 percent.  Iowa college students graduate with the third highest debt in the entire country.

College debt is threatening the economic recovery by putting graduates deeply in debt before they even start their working lives.  College costs are threatening the very accessibility of college to the middle class.

Time is running out.  Congress needs to come together and act by the end of the month.  Keeping college affordable is just too important to job creation and economic growth.