Free College Tuition Taking Root

When Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders ran for President, he was labeled a socialist.

Many of the voters who latched on to his platforms were young people who were able to connect with what he was saying. One policy issue that gained traction was free college tuition. As anyone who has been following college costs knows, a four- year college degree is being priced out for many would-be students. Although Sanders lost the nomination to Hillary Clinton, the free tuition notion apparently has some traction. Recently the State of New York announced free college tuition for students who attended New York state colleges. Two provisos of the program are that family income must be under $100,000 and the student must promise to remain in New York State for each year of scholarship. Thus a student who receives a four-year scholarship is to remain in New York for four-years after graduation. This is to prevent a “ brain drain” where students leave the state soon after graduation.

The state of New Jersey has had a program for a number of years. The NJ Stars program enabled students who graduate from high school with a certain GPA would be able to attend the local community college tuition-free. If the student maintains the requisite GPA at the community college, they would receive scholarship funds to a New Jersey state college for the next two years.

Other states may be jumping on the wagon. The state of Tennessee has enacted the Tennessee Promise Act where, starting in 2018, all state residents will be able to attend community college tuition-free. Students must be state residents for at least a year before applying. To keep the scholarship, they have to enroll at least part-time, maintain a 2.0 GPA and complete eight hours of community service each semester.

Oregon has also enacted similar community college free tuition programs.

While programs like those mentioned have been slow to develop, the future for many prospective college students look bright. Even back in colonial times, Dr. Benjamin Rush, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, observed that in order for the fledgling democracy, the United States of America, to succeed, it needed an educated population. Two centuries later, the same is still true.

c. 2017 J. Margolis