Joanne Yatvin describes the spread of the concept of free community college for all. This, of course, was one of Senator Bernie Sanders’ campaign promises, premised on the belief that students should not be denied the opportunity to continue their education because of their inability to pay. The irony is that the the community college idea began after World War II as free colleges for all. Over time, states started shifting the costs to students. While community colleges continue to be lower cost than private colleges and four-year colleges, they are not tuition-free in most states. They should be.
Yatvin is a former teacher, principal, superintendent, and literacy specialist who lives in Oregon.
She writes:
A state run program called the “Tennessee Promise” has just completed its first year of operation with 16,291 students enrolled in tuition-free community colleges or technical schools. Much of the money for the program has been available in federal scholarships for several years, but most students and their families did not know about it, and the government applications were very difficult to fill out. Now, in the Tennessee system all students are informed about the program early in their high school careers and given instructions and assistance in filling out the application form. Students who receive a federal scholarship then get additional funding from local sources and the state itself. Although the price of community college in Tennessee is $4000, students and their families pay nothing.
The initial response to this new program has been amazing. In the coming school year all of the 2,291 students at Nashville’s largest high school will apply for the program. According to a student counselor at that school, the Promise is “just part of the culture now.”
Having passed a law creating a similar program, called the “Oregon Promise,” a second state will begin its program this fall. Already 8,500 Oregon students have applied to state community colleges. In many ways this program echoes that of Tennessee, but there are a few differences.
Both programs keep state costs down by being the last contributor. Only after federal Pell Grants and other financial aid sources have been used does the state step in with its funds. However, Tennessee has backed its program with $360 million from lottery revenues while the Oregon legislature has approved only $10 million for this year with no guarantee of future funding.
To qualify for the grant Tennessee requires students to maintain at least a 2.0 grade-point average in high school and maintain that average in college. In addition, they must attend college full time and devote eight hours to community service before the beginning of each school term. Students are also matched with a volunteer mentor to help them stay on track with college studies. In Oregon the grade-point average for students to enroll and remain in the “Promise” program is higher: 2.5. However, students may choose to attend school only half-time. In addition Oregon’s students get $1000 from the state whether or not they receive a federal grant. Finally, undocumented Oregon students also qualify for the Promise grants.
What excites me about these programs is that ten other states are already interested and are closely following the progress in Tennessee and Oregon. In addition, President Obama has proposed a national program based on the structure developed in Tennessee. But even beyond those possibilities I expect to see a positive change in the actions and attitudes of high school students wherever there is a “Promise” for them. Knowing that financial support is available if they work hard and get decent grades in high school will motivate many students who had no hope of college or technical schools before. I also expect to see a big uptick in attendance, behavior and effort in high school students in the two states already committed to the “Promise” and more of the same in any other states that decide to join them.
Meanwhile, instead of strategizing about how to provide free community college to all, the U.S. Education Department and Congress continue to send billions to phony for-profit colleges that rip off veterans and the unwary. Despite expose after expose, despite the financial collapse of Corinthian Colleges, Congress is content to send these institutions money to provide worthless degrees.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I went to community college free and I’ve always been enormously grateful for it. It wasn’t “free” of course- the rest of the public paid for it.
I feel like it was a good investment because I wasn’t making enough to pay federal income tax prior to the free degree. After the degree I was making enough to pay federal taxes. Technically they made money on the deal, if you want to just look at purely practical effects 🙂
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It’s an investment by the government in the public and the future of the country.
But investment in the future has become passe’.
Few people in government these days are interested in anything other than how much money they will make when they get out and start working for and/or making speeches to Wall Street firms.
And of course, Wall Street is only interested in how much money they will make in the next 6 months to a year and are actually all too happy to see current and subsequent generations become indentured servants.
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I recently watched the news program “Vice” which had an episode about the student debt crisis. Student debt is one of the only forms of debt that cannot be discharged through bankruptcy. They profiled several students, many of whom attended for profit schools. These young people continue to live at home, and live a life of never ending “indentured servitude.” There is a problem in the state systems as well. As governors have slashed budgets, tuition increases have skyrocketed. Elizabeth Warren pointed out that this long term debt of so many young people has implications for the economy. These young people cannot buy homes, and they will not be fully participating consumers. This will cause the economy to shrink. If the loan goes into default, it is the American TAXPAYERS that are on the hook. The for profit vulture schools always get paid! This is a corrupt system and is actively promoted by lots of legislators.
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I’ve also watched the documentary you’re referring to. The formulaic American dream is currently broken, but yet there are still so many who refuse to acknowledge the problem. Even worse, there are those that are content to keep the system as it is strictly for profits’ sake. “Profit vulture schools” is right!
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Missouri has the A plus program which comes close to providing free community college for those that have the h.s. GPA and fulfill other qualifications. I believe that lottery money funds the program.
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I’m glad to hear that the possibility of free community college is spreading to other states. Let’s hope that the whole country adopts it too.
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South Carolina has a similar program. My son was enrolled at the local community college during his last semester of high school where he earned 9 college credit hours. He will continue to study at the community college this fall and the cost is covered by the state. Like the programs mentioned by other readers, there is a minimum GPA and hours enrolled requirement. He plans to take general courses which will transfer to one of the state universities while he works to save for upcoming college expenses. This arrangement allows him to determine a major and investigate the residential college best suited for him. This is a great financial benefit and I am pleased he decided to go this route.
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While there is much to like in this Tennessee program, and I am proud of my home state in ways some might not understand, I must be guarded in my praise for it. There are several problems.
First, the dual credit courses we offer high schoolers. Do we really think it is a good investment in our best and brightest students and teach them half as much as we did before dual credit? Recall, we used to teach them them most demanding curriculum in high school, followed by classes in college that asked them to do a lot of reading and studying at a higher level. They presumably became bankers and lawyers that knew about American history and the possibilities and dangers of science. People who could and would lead society in a good direction. Most of the kids who get dual credit American History will never take another course because courses are expensive.
Second problem: Are the basic courses they are taking at the free community colleges being taught by teachers who are the best? We have some wonderful people in our local community college. They are friends and I think they do a good job. But they are under the gun to look like they succeed on paper (we cannot have people not finishing college, that will trigger reductions in funding). Moreover, their pay is miserable. Adjuncts fill so many positions that used to be filled by professors. It is an unstable environment due to under funding.
My final objection is moral. The program is funded by a lottery, which is the most regressive tax we have ever used. The poor are being taxed so that the middle class, or what is left of it, can send their kids to college at reduced cost.
The free college thing has arisen even as traditional schools have had to hike tuition to cover the loss of revenue from taxes. On balance, it would be better to use an income tax to fund higher education at an appropriate level. Unfortunately, the electorate does not believe in its public servants. Maybe political leaders deserve it, but no one wants to fund anything. The electorate wants everything, but does not want to pay for it.
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“My final objection is moral. The program is funded by a lottery, which is the most regressive tax we have ever used. The poor are being taxed so that the middle class, or what is left of it, can send their kids to college at reduced cost.”
I would not consider the lottery to be a “regressive tax” as it is totally voluntary. It’s a voluntary tax that is many times being paid by those who usually can least afford it but, hey, they choose to play or not. I can’t see how that is “regressive”.
What is immoral are all the state programs with eligibility criteria based upon the invalid educational malpractices that are grades and or standardized test scores. Again it is a form of discrimination by the state against those with “lesser” (I hesitate to use that term) intellectual capabilities/abilities. That discrimination is what is immoral, unjust and unethical.
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While it may be that the term “regressive” is misused in a technical sense, i still do not like anything that has the tendency to get money from poor folks that is then used to benefit the more wealthy.
I would agree with your description of the testing requirements which determine eligibility for the receiving of the scholarships based on this money. It is reminiscent of poll taxes and literacy tests which disenfranchised so many people in the wake of the end of reconstruction. Interestingly, the tests you feel hostile to were supported by the progressives of that same era. They thought this would result in the exclusion of wealthy students who were getting into good schools by virtue of their name only. A meritocracy was their dream. Now it seems elusive, does it not?
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I am sorry to hear about the problems you cite. They certainly weren’t mentioned in the article I read. But, let’s not lose hope; some or all of them may be resolved in time. Even now there exists the benefit of many students who couldn’t afford college getting further education and–I hope–good jobs.
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We have discussed the issue of free community colleges here before, so I just remind you of the main problem: When only community colleges are free, 4-year colleges suffer. Our freshmen enrollment declined by 10% last year, the first year of TN Promise. More students will go from comm colleges to 4 year colleges, hence 4 year colleges are forced to “adjust” their course requirements to accommodate this flow of students. As for the lottery money: my understanding is that the standard “lottery scholarship” for 4 year college students got restricted to accommodate the funding of TN Promise.
In other words, making only community colleges free will improve some statistics like graduation numbers, but it’s doubtful that it’s in the best interest of college students and college education, in general.
As it was indicated earlier, community colleges are much easier to control due to the low percentage of tenured faculty, hence they are much less resistant to privatization. In TN, we now have an online community college and some colleges that have “close ties” with private corporations.
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The history of 2-year community colleges. They were called junior colleges. After Workd War 2, the federal government funded their expansion as free, public community colleges
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And now they seem to be funded by states and at the expense of 4 year colleges. Obama is talking about funding free comm colleges, but how will it be done not to affect 4 year colleges adversely?
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