Introduction

The curiosity that I have had on this whole topic of higher education is why our country doesn’t offer free education at our non-profit or community college level. From what I know, most who attend a community college are either taking continued education or are not able to afford the tuition, fees, materials, and dorm costs that come with a university. It seems that more and more students or potential students are attending community colleges.

Body

Equality and Access to Education

They are more affordable, there is more class availability and flexibility, and credits transfer to university if you need to go beyond two years. It’s a great starting point for young students right out of high school and, most times, for older students who are maybe stuck in a rut or have lost a job due to company closure or restructuring. Sometimes adult students even consider another career choice. I know that in some other countries, higher education is a priority making it very affordable or even free. I know that most of the argument, which is in everything, is politics and government. Whatever increases our financial gains as a country, it is a priority.

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Should College Be Free: Balancing Equality and Sustainability

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Financial Strain and Sustainability

There is a lot of debate on whether public, community-based college should be free or not. The question is valid as I was doing my research, the pros, and cons that were presented canceled each other out in many ways. There are so many valid points on each spectrum of the topic that I can see why nothing has been set in stone, at least for our country. There are several countries that have already adopted and implemented tuition-free or reduced-cost college.

Before doing my research, I only knew of the UK being the place to live as they took care of their college students. But after reading, there are several others that do this as well. England, Germany, France, Mexico, Brazil, Denmark, Estonia, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden, Turkey, Poland, and Europe, just to name a few. Even some of the states have adopted this way, Minnesota, Oregon, and Tennessee. Their governments have already smoothed out the rough edges and are already implementing the programs, making education a priority.

Author Kevin Carey, policy director of the Education Sector, in his article “A College Education for All, Free and Online” (1), speaks of a gentleman by the name of Shai Reshef, founder and president of the University of the People. He started a tuition-free online institution that enrolled its first class of students in 2009. The Reshef goal is to provide higher education to those students that do not have access to higher education. He says, “Some can’t afford it, or they live in countries where there are simply no good colleges to attend. Others live in rural areas or identify with a culture, an ethnicity, or a gender that is excluded from public services.” (1) There are a few requirements that students must meet.

Balancing Government Spending

They must have a high school diploma and must be proficient in the English language. A small application fee, anywhere from $10 to $50, is also required at the time of registration. Now Reshef has 1000 students in 115 different countries attending the UoPeople, as he calls it. Reshef believes that “pulling students from different cultures together is a step towards peace. He also mentioned “that low-cost, online higher education tools are the future for most people” (1), making this UoPeople a favorite amongst students. He believes that there are still thousands of students looking for this kind of help, making his vision sustainable for the future of UoPeople. However, some may disagree with his view.

Andrew P. Kelley is a resident scholar and the director of the Center on Higher Education Reform at the American Enterprise Institute. He writes an article in the NY Times, “The Problem that Free College Isn’t Free.” He says that college isn’t free. That the cost of free college just gets deflected onto taxpayers, therefore, causing public strain on budgets. Kelley also says that rather than spread funding to ALL; we should apply those funds to those who need it.

“A valuable degree is worth the investment even if you have to pay something for it.” (2) Basically, stating that if we just give away funds so students have access to “tuition-free” education that there really is no value in a degree as well as funds will likely be taken for granted, which in turn cause drop out rates to go sky high. Th