White House Higher Ed Datapalooza

DATA CRAZY: Nearly 50 different private, nonprofit or academic entities presented new apps, services or tools Wednesday at Datapalooza, hosted by the Education Department and the White House. Among them: College Abacus [http://bit.ly/1ajhnPf], which allows students to calculate and compare their projected financial aid packages; Boundless [http://bit.ly/1m7BNmj], an online alternative to textbooks; and Ranku [http://bit.ly/1m7DIY7], aimed at helping students navigate the world of online colleges while competing with the marketing of big for-profit colleges. All of the resources are intended to help students evaluate and select colleges based on cost, financial aid, student loan default rates and job outcomes — aligning with the president's college affordability agenda.