Gates Foundation to Focus on College Education

The Gates Foundation has announced it will spend several hundred million dollars over the next five years in an effort to double the current number of low-income students who graduate from college, according to The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

On Tuesday at A Forum for Education in America, Bill Gates told guests, "According to our data, the number of low income and minority students graduating college ready today is 22 percent, and that figure is increasing far too slowly. It's unacceptable. We need to do better."

The Foundation will spend approximately $3 billion across all its education initiatives this year alone, including plans to reduce the dropout rate at the high school level and provide more teacher support. Experts suggest that with the failing economy, federal and state agencies with less and less to spend could start collaborating with the Foundation to improve education in America.