College for Free!? (Mark Cuban is Paying…)
College is expensive nowadays. There are various arguments out there why that is the case, as I previously discussed in the post Dear college student with exorbitant tuition bill: Blame your legislator.
However, there is a new plan on the table by the Sara Goldrick-Rab, University of Wisconsin-Madison professor and 2014 AERA Early Career Awardee (a big deal). There is lots to like in Professor Goldrick-Rab’s proposal. I like the plan as long it doesn’t come with an NCLB-style outcomes based accountability system for higher education. Sara hasn’t suggested this, but you know policymakers… these are the same folks that are currently thinking high-stakes testing for Pre-K is a brilliant idea.
Anyways, Sara sent me the following blog. It is a clever approach that leverages existing resources with some new additional resources as a national strategy. Yes, sorry, Mark Cuban is not actually paying (unless he wants to pick up the tab, he has the resources to do so I believe— I digress). Without further ado.
MAKE THE FIRST TWO YEARS OF COLLEGE FREESara Goldrick-Rab, University of Wisconsin-MadisonTwitter: SaragoldrickrabAlmost half a century ago, the federal government expanded financial aid to college students to make college more affordable – but today the odds of getting a degree are more tightly linked to family income than ever before. Inequality is growing: between 1992 and 2004, the odds that a high school graduate who took at least Algebra II would decide not to go to college went up among all income-groups except the very wealthiest. Students from families of modest means have also become more likely to drop out from public colleges and universities – leaving with debts, not degrees.This situation is antithetical to the American Dream. That’s why last week my colleague Nancy Kendall and I issued a policy proposal to make the first two years free for all qualified students at community colleges and public universities. This would control rising costs and improve access to higher education for the majority of Americans.The current financial aid system is messed up. Aid goes to students who choose to pursue degrees at institutions of all kinds, public, private, and for-profit. Over time, costs of attendance in all sectors haveCollege for Free!? (Mark Cuban is Paying…) | Cloaking Inequity: