Wednesday Linkpile compiles, for your information and delight, links to noteworthy news articles pertaining to all things online and higher-educational.

• Forbes blogger Jamie Farrell rallies to the for-profits' cause. "For-Profits Are Not The Problem, State Schools Are." "It’s not the for-profit schools that are the problem; it’s the state schools lack of motivation and understanding of how online education will better the lives of millions. The disservice is that of our state schools poor marketing, slow admissions and fear of investment."
• The Hill's Congress Blog offers cheerful testimony of the success of student aid programs and other governmental interventions into higher education. "Proof that Education department policies help students." "To those who question the effectiveness of the federal student aid programs, I ask that they look at the people around them. There are staff working in Capitol Hill offices -- and even some members of Congress -- who would have never earned the educations they did without the assistance of financial aid programs, such as the Pell, SEOG and Federal Work Study. There are Americans risking their lives in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere who brought needed skills to their service thanks to educations made possible by these programs."
• The Center for American Progress offers college aspirants a handy tipsheet on how to manage tuition and related higher-ed expenses. "Buying College: What Consumers Need to Know." "Each of the ways of looking at how the federal government can help students make better decisions—creating buyer beware notices, encouraging comparison shopping, and increasing college consciousness—represents a step in making sure students rely on information in their college choice, not just reputation or chance. These programs have the added benefit of encouraging colleges to compete for students based upon real factors like student outcomes and affordability rather than U.S. News rankings."
• CBS MoneyWatch.com has run a three-part series chronicling the woes of compounding student-loan interest. "Student Loans: How Excessive Debt Limits Options." "Certainly, earning a degree opens many doors. So if your child needs loans to finish school, smart borrowing is a wise decision. But when a student borrows more than they truly need and burn money with lifestyle upgrades or, in some cases, by attending a costly private or out-of-state university, the burden of repayment may shut some of the same doors that their education opened in the first place."
• ... And the titanic struggle between for-profits and federal legislators rages on. "Growing Pains: Ashford University's Recruitment Practices Come Under Fire." "Though Ashford University is still sorting out problems concerning the misappropriation of federal student aid money, it has a larger question to answer: How exactly did a tiny university grow seemingly overnight into a giant online institution of more than 76,000 students?"
• Capella Education Company, which had been humming along for so long, has hit sour notes enough of late to worry Zack Equity Research. "Bearish on Capella Education." "We recently downgraded our recommendation on Capella Education Company (CPLA - Analyst Report), the provider of online education, to Underperform with a price target of $48.00 following a decline in new enrollment. Earlier, we had a Neutral stance on the stock."
Who doesn't love a prophecy or two? "Facing the Future: For-Profit Colleges, Online Learning, and the Public Good." "Whatever education comes to look like in the years and decades to come, it’s a safe bet it won’t look like it did in years and decades past. Such, anyway, is the expectation of David Hunter Tow, Director of the Future Planet Research Centre located in Australia."