This is the sad reality facing millions of young people across the country face every August. The reality is, a system in which the government that was founded on, with the principles of “by the people, for the people,” profits off students. The United States had the best education system in the world, just 40 years ago. The University of California system was the pinnacle of higher education throughout the world.
Moreover, these schools were affordable to middle and lower class families. This was a time where it was common for students to work and simultaneously go to school, with little or no debt. My mother’s first tuition check the Chico State University in California was a mere $240.
Let that sink in. For the price of a refurbished cell phone, a person could afford a higher education.
We cannot, and will not, make America great by stopping people from climbing up the social ranks, through education. We will not make America great by building a wall and discriminating against people based on their racial or religious identity. The only way we can make America great is by adding value to our human capitol.
The United States is the most powerful economy in history for two main reasons: Our resource capital and our human capital. One does not have to be a genius to understand the reality that we cannot increase the natural resources this country has been blessed with. The only way to have a profound effect on the social and economic fabric of this country. The way that we as a nation will achieve this is through education.
The costs of education have risen over the past half century for a multitude of reasons. Obviously, inflation does account for part of the increase in costs, however, the cost of public tuition has gone up 498 percent since 1985. Inflation has not gone up by 114 percent in the same time period. This proves that there is more to account for the rise in tuition costs. States have decreased funding and the federal government has shifted money away from public universities. This is a problem that we can fix.
On one side of the political spectrum, we have seen the level of outrage over the $1.3 trillion dollar student debt on the left. While Donald Trump and friends have not even addressed the issue of student debt in any way. Hillary Clinton has stated she wants to make public college cost free to families making less than $125,000. She is echoing the tone that was set by Bernie Sanders earlier this year. This is a great idea in my opinion. I think it is important to have a fair system, while families making more than that amount will have to save for college it is still attainable. She has also included a plan to reduce the loans that students have already taken out and to offer better refinancing options. We need to increase the funding of education on the state and national level. The best way of adding to the country is education, trade school, and community college. Critics say that the government should not subsidize an art degree of something that is perceived as useless. I do not agree, while an art major does not make as much money as a business major, they add to the economy, community, and more importantly the world in a different more profound way.
The change in tone is wonderful. This is one of the true few bipartisan issues in polls. Now we must act, go out and vote for a candidate who will fight for affordable college education. This is the only way to fix this problem while millions still suffer. Change is slow but it will happen. Student loan debt is one of the fundamental issues of our time. As I finished writing this article the weight of the issue started to feel too depressing to think about. I do have some hope for change and a resolution to this issue but I only hope that it comes fast enough.
