"Across the country, colleges are reporting significant declines in the amount of Perkins Loan money that they have available to lend to students," The Chronicle of Higher Education. "The drop, which is due to cuts in federal support and a decline in the consolidation of student loans, is expected to result in thousands of students receiving smaller Perkins Loan awards - or no award at all - this year as compared to last. For college students, the timing could not be worse, advocates of the Perkins program say. The cuts come amid a credit crunch that could make private student loans and home-equity loans harder to obtain this fall, particularly for borrowers with poor credit."