At the State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama announced a proposal to provide free college to everyone. Free education at a community college that is, not at a four-year college or university. His proposal is being called the free college plan and his idea is to make two years of college "as free and universal in America as high school is today", (Chronicle of Higher Education, Jan. 21, 2015).
Since the beginning of his administration, President Obama has been a big proponent of community colleges. In 2009, he proposed in his budget $12 Billion for community colleges, but Congress approved only $2 Billion. The following year, he proposed the infusion of $5 Billion to modernize community colleges through his American Jobs Act, which did not pass. In his fiscal year 2013 budget, he proposed $8 Billion for a proposal entitled “Community College to Career Fund," which would provide money to community colleges and states to form partnerships with businesses to train an estimated two million workers in high-growth and in-demand areas. Congress did not approve it and the President again included it again in his 2014 budget, but yet again it didn’t get congressional approval.
President Obama believes that community colleges have done a great job of educating American Citizens. He points to significant enrollment growth in community colleges in spite of the recent recession and massive cuts to community college budgets.
Moreover, it’s important to note that community colleges educate 44 percent of all the undergraduates enrolled in higher education, including 52 percent of all Hispanic students and 44 percent of all African-Americans. The community colleges also enroll the highest percentages of low-income students with far fewer resources than other types of institutions. For example, on a per-student basis, community colleges' educational and general expenditures are less than half those at public research institutions, (Chronicle of Higher Education, Sept. 14, 2011)
The President’s free college plan calls for the federal government to pay for about three-quarters of students’ tuition costs and for the states to pick up the rest. In order to receive free tuition, a student would have to be enrolled at least half-time, maintain a 2.5 grade-point-average or better, and make satisfactory progress toward a degree. However, the plan isn’t cheap, its estimated price tag is approximately $60 Billion over a ten-year period. Additionally, if enacted, it would save full-time students an average of $3,800 in tuition per year and impact over nine million students. Republicans in Congress have already dismissed the idea.
One interesting issue to point out is that missing from the President’s speech this year was his previous tough talk on the high costs of college, which he has included in his past addresses to Congress. The President also didn’t mention his college-ratings plan. In both 2012 and in 2013, President Obama took colleges to task over rising costs, putting them "on notice" that the government would not continue to subsidize the persistent increases in tuition.
Free higher education is not a new concept. According to Wikipedia, forty-four countries provide a free college or university education (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_education). So why should the richest country in the world not provide a free system of higher education? A good place to start would be at the community colleges and provide a free education for the first two years. President Obama should be praised for his proposal for a free college plan.
However, I expect that his proposal will face stiff opposition by the Republic controlled Congress. Nevertheless, let’s hope and pray that Republicans will see the light and approve this important initiative. Or maybe the American people can place enough pressure on the Republicans to support and pass the legislation behind the plan. After all, don’t you think our citizens deserve a free education? We provide a free education from kindergarten to twelfth grade. Why not a free college education?
