Students and administrators may soon see a change in federal financial aid.

Vice President Joe Biden spoke in a conference call Thursday to provide follow-up information after President Barack Obama commented on the White House's plan to work on the affordability of postsecondary education in his State of the Union address on Tuesday Jan. 24.

"Of course, it's not enough for us to increase student aid," Obama said in the address. "States also have to do their part by making higher education a priority in their budgets. And colleges and universities have to do their part by working to keep costs down."

Biden said that he, President Obama and Secretary of the Department of Education Arne Duncan have been engaging in conversation with administrators about the state of federal financial aid and will soon be coming up with legislation to help solve problems with affordability.

Biden insisted that the goal of himself and the President is to make sure the United States is the best-educated nation in the world.

"That can't be accomplished unless qualified students are not denied access for any other reason than they can't afford it," Biden said. "That should not be the impediment."

As well as changing the amount of payback on federal loans, Biden said the new legislation would also increase funds appropriated for campus-based aid. He said the plan would be to double the Federal Work-Study program as well as increase Perkins Loans and the amount of direct aid applied to colleges and universities.

Biden said that Work-Study is unique because it looks for need rather than ability to pay.

"If you need the money, we know you'll pay it back by being well educated," he said.

Indiana State University President Daniel J. Bradley said that any expansion of the work-study program is a welcome improvement.

For the past few years the money for students in Work-Study, whether in total or per students, has been decreasing, Bradley said. While federal numbers continued to decline ISU allotted $500,000 internal dollars to Work-Study funds, he said.

Special assistant to the President, Teresa Exline said that Work-Study can also be valuable for retention. She said the Strategic Plan and the Career Center are working to make positions on campus more meaningful by including more experiential learning.

"Those positions bring students closer to campus and give them something to use for the future," Exline said.

Bradley said state funding fluctuates and is deteriorating in this economy because states are not mandated by the constitution to fund postsecondary education. He said that when states have limited funding legislators find better things for the money that are required to be provided for.

"It's a mess partially because it becomes discretionary spending," Bradley said.

Biden asserted that educations is "the single most important qualitative edge" in terms of our countries security and it's ability to compete in the world.

"We are going to continue to do everything we can and take the case of the American people," Biden said. "It is overwhelmingly in the national interest of the United States of America for all of you to stay in school and graduate."