TAPPING THE 401K's (Say it aint so!) WASHINGTON - One in four parents plans to tap his individual retirement account or 401k account to pay for his child's college education, a survey by Sallie Mae finds. Gallup surveyed about 2,000 parents who have children under 18 for the U.S.'s biggest student loan company. Sixty percent say they are saving for their children's college educations. On average, parents were on track to save more than $48,000. About 15 percent of families are using a college savings plan, compared with 11 percent a year ago and 9 percent two years ago.To pay for college, parents are chipping in 37 percent from their incomes and savings and then adding another 10 percent from borrowing. College students are saving about 9 percent and borrowing about 14 percent. Grants and scholarships make up 23 percent of the tab, while family and friends pick up the last 7 percent, the survey finds. Overall, parents say college costs are up. High-income families, those making more than $100,000, on average spend about $31,245 on college. Middle-income families, those with incomes between $35,000 and $100,000, spent $22,628, will low-income families spent $17,404.

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