two years of free community college??

http://news.yahoo.com/obama-proposes-two-years-free-community-college-235032113.html

It sounds like a dream come true if this were to apply the many unemployed citizens out there...

Tennessee is implimenting this on a state wide level, beginning next fall, but just for kids graduating from high school this spring.

Nothing is free, the taxpayer will foot the bill.

+1!!!!!!

A new tax?

Colorado has this. Its not a handout.

The student graduates from high school, but the diploma is held pending completion of a large number of units at community college.

I think if the student drops out early she has to pay out of pocket for CC units completed to get her HS diploma.

It allows them to start college classes while still in high school.

They do it here in NM, too. In a couple of my classes over the summer, there were HS kids getting credits. Smart on their part and I wish I had the discipline and time to have done it in HS. Any class that could count towards your degree is available from electives to academics.

Long story short...pay down drastically out natl debt. Have something close to a balanced budget. Fully fund social security for the years to come......


THEN we can discuss something like this.





call me a realist...

Sounds like a way to make up for dumbing down the elementary and high schools. A lot of "community college" time is spend making up for what they didn't learn in High School. When I was in community college many years ago, the "bonehead" classes didn't count toward graduation or any kind of degree.

entrance exams a section on reading handwritten text, along with the rest of the bonehead subjects.
Apparently today's high school graduates can't even read something written in cursive.

Odds are they probably don't write cursive either!!

No concept of penmanship. I'm embarrassed for them.

Then how do they endorse a paycheck or say paperwork for college, a car, a loan etc!?? That's got to be really embarrassing !!

But when they have to hand write something, it looks like a little kid wrote it!

Thank goodness I learned cursive in school then!! My printing sucks but I like cursive over printing! It takes too darn long!

I was just hoping that this could help the millions of unemployed or underemployed citizens in our nation get better jobs or training.. I guess I was wrong.

I wouldn't say you're necessarily wrong, and I think the intent is good. However, after teaching at a college and working for a federal agency, I'm always concerned about implementation when it comes to government programs.

When I went in the mid 1990s those classes were called "Reading Lab" and "Writing Lab".I wonder if they changed the name or not.. They'd have to dumb it down somehow...

That will help with your job search!

No I dropped out to take care of my TBM family. I wasn't sure at the time what I wanted to do. You know how young people are...

That's why I asking about people who are unemployed. We should get first dibs on this! But knowing our government more likely those who are here against the law more likely!!

Sorry to hear that you weren't able to finish. If you could go back to community college, what trade or career would be of interest to you?

I'm not sure. Perhaps a career class so that I get the right fit with my disabilities....

As a hobby, I teach at a community college in the evenings as an adjunct. I really enjoy teaching, and I strongly feel everyone should have access to education. However, I think Obama's proposal is a terrible idea that will just result in more government waste.

Costs are already very reasonable at community colleges. Additionally, I view the military as the great education equalizer. Anyone willing to serve for a few years in the full time military or national guard(which is what I did) can get an education. Also, time in the military is much more productive than wasting a couple years on a mission.

I'm amazed at the strong negative reaction to a proposal to find a way to get more people (especially those who can't afford it) a college education. The proposal didn't detail costs or how it would be paid for (and yes, that matters very much), so assuming it will be "new taxes" is more than a little premature.

Oh, just a note for "procrustean:" our all-volunteer military is darn near at capacity. If everyone who wanted to take advantage of it paying for college tried to join, the military would turn 95% of them away. And what's the difference between taxes paying for an education through the military or through a community college? It's taxes either way...

I didn't ASSUME "new taxes", I was asking a QUESTION.
It has to be paid for SOMEHOW. Community Colleges are local, not Federal. This just seems like a new way for the Federal Government to mandate things be done by state and local governments. Without the funding to back it up.

It WILL be paid for by tax money -- that's the only way government can fund anything.

Everyone will be required by law to purchase two years' tuition at a community college. Based on your income, you will get subsidies based on tax credits. If your income is low enough, it will cost you nothing.
You will be fined if you can't prove you've purchased 2 years of community college.

I guess that's one way of doing it.

Just like his medical care debacle!???

I'll concede that there are some people who can't take the military option due to factors beyond their control such as physical disability, and there should be other options for those folks. In spite of your assertion the military is near capacity, my observation of the very active military recruitment program at the college where I teach indicates the potential for students to take advantage of the military for education had not yet been exhausted. Once the recruiters scale back their efforts, your argument would carry more weight.

My concern with the program is the waste I have observed at the college, and every time there is a government program that provides funds to the college, the waste increases.

P.S. I live in a state where the state does pay for community college for most students. This has resulted in a lot of waste as students who are not dedicated to their education start college, take a few classes, and drop out. This also had a negative impact on students who are dedicated to their education. It's hard to have effective team projects when half the members of the team stop coming halfway through the semester and just accept the failing grade since they don't have any skin in the game, i.e., they haven't spent any of their own money to attend the class.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2015 07:13PM by procrusteanchurch.

procrusteanchurch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> my observation of the very active
> military recruitment program at the college where
> I teach indicates the potential for students to
> take advantage of the military for education had
> not yet been exhausted. Once the recruiters scale
> back their efforts, your argument would carry more
> weight.

Perhaps researching facts rather than "my observation" might be a good idea...according to the Pentagon, the Army (and no other branch) fell short of its recruiting goal by about 7,000 people in 2005, but like the other military branches, it has had a surplus of recruits every year since then.

Currently less than 5 out of every 10 applicants are accepted for all services. Some aren't chosen for medical/physical reasons, but the others because the services are far more picky now, they have so many recruits and so few spaces to fill that they can afford to be.

http://money.cnn.com/2013/05/15/news/economy/military-recruiting/

> My concern with the program is the waste I have
> observed at the college, and every time there is a
> government program that provides funds to the
> college, the waste increases.
>
> P.S. I live in a state where the state does pay
> for community college for most students. This has
> resulted in a lot of waste as students who are not
> dedicated to their education start college, take a
> few classes, and drop out. This also had a
> negative impact on students who are dedicated to
> their education. It's hard to have effective team
> projects when half the members of the team stop
> coming halfway through the semester and just
> accept the failing grade since they don't have any
> skin in the game, i.e., they haven't spent any of
> their own money to attend the class.

Are students who don't get a degree a "waste?" Isn't even a little college better than none at all? Have any facts to back up the assertion that the *reason* they quit is because they didn't pay for it themselves?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2015 07:44PM by ificouldhietokolob.

Okay, let's agree to disagree on this one. If nearly half of applicants are accepted, to me that indicates that the military is still a very viable option for those who want to get an education, but I understand that leaves the other half out in the cold, although other resources such as student loans and Pell grants are still available.

I'd like to continue the discussion and respond to some of your other points, but I'm at a sporting event and my daughter is about to compete, so bye for now.

"I'm amazed at the strong negative reaction to a proposal to find a way to get more people (especially those who can't afford it) a college education. The proposal didn't detail costs or how it would be paid for (and yes, that matters very much), so assuming it will be "new taxes" is more than a little premature."

You did see how the prez rolled out UHC which wasn't a new "tax"...but somehow is a tax now.

I have a comm. college degree which I am proud of, worked hard for, and paid for.

Giving this for "free" only cheapens it..

nonmo_1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You did see how the prez rolled out UHC which
> wasn't a new "tax"...but somehow is a tax now.

I don't really care. About 12 million more people in the US now have healthcare, and the government costs are manageable. I'm good with that.

>
> I have a comm. college degree which I am proud of,
> worked hard for, and paid for.
>
> Giving this for "free" only cheapens it..

I have 2 BS degrees and an MS degree. Didn't take a single grant or loan. Worked my behind off...worked full-time and went to school full-time for 7 years. Hardly ever slept.

Yet I'm still just fine with providing opportunities to others to get more education -- 'cause not everybody is like me, was in my same circumstances, can work full time while going to school, etc. The more educated we are, the better off we are. I'm ok with my tax money going to that. You are, of course, free to disagree :)

I have to admit that cost is a big concern. But on the other hand, this could be an incredible boost for our economy. I spoke with someone who works at the federal Department of Education and he told me that community colleges provide most job training these days. Looking at the broad array of practical majors and programs offered at my local CC, it doesn't surprise me.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2015 07:02PM by summer.

Obama can propose anything he wants. Education is very popular in State of the Union speeches.

It will never happen. The Vietnam era war protests pissed off the wrong people, who have been de-funding higher education ever since.

"The Vietnam era war protests pissed off the wrong people, who have been de-funding higher education ever since."

Nice way of looking at that situation. Nicely said..

How bout we cut military spending. No need to spend more than the next 10 countries combined. We can use that money. We've been told that the problem is the lack of skills that the labor force currently has. This idea presented today is a good idea. We could even afford to raise taxes to where they were in the 1980s.

Ironically, a bit part of military spending is the "join the military, get college paid for" programs some are so fond of.
How about that.

Ummm… don't we all ready have pell grants available to those in financial need that basically pay for community college? And in many state kids in high school can take college classes for free. Just seems like a repetition of programs that are already out there.