McCaskill roundtable addresses higher education financial aid reform

COLUMBIA — Federal financial aid programs are too complicated and often leave students and parents under served. Such was the takeaway from a roundtable discussion Friday hosted by U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and involving students, parents and financial aid officials from around the state.

McCaskill was on hand to gather input ahead of legislative debate in the U.S. Senate on financial aid reform. The senator said she thought a bill would be debated but probably not passed before the end of the year, adding that the Senate already has a lot on its plate.

"One of the reasons I'm excited to be here is that we're not going to talk about health care," McCaskill said, drawing laughter.

Introducing the forum, McCaskill said financial aid reform is important if higher education is going to be available to everyone. "We can't lose sight of the fact that our most important resources are young people," she said.