Dem candidate for Governor unveils plan to make college tuition free

[Report1212]

This reminds me a lot of Georgia's HOPE program before the GOP/conservadems gutted it. Has a lot of potential. Use the link below to sign on as a citizen supporter of the plan.

Former Lieutenant Governor Bill Halter, an Arkansas Democratic Party candidate for governor, today unveiled a new proposal that would allow all students in the state who have at least a 2.5 grade point average to attend a state college tuition-free.

Read more: http://boldprogressives.org/arkansas-gubernatorial-candidate-unveils-plan-to-pay-for-college-for-every-qualifying-student/

[FSogol]

1. K & R. n/t

[Report1212]

2. Thanks! nt

[FSogol]

3. Anytime. (and kick again)

[TheProgressive]

4. That is what California had in the 1970's...

All those graduates fueled the computer revolution...I was one of them...

[Marrah_G]

5. Word of caution on this:

Massachusetts give free tuition to any state college if your tenth grade Mcas scores are high enough.

Awesome right? Means kids can get an education right?

Here is the reality:

In-State

Tuition: 910.00
Fees: 7140.00

So when they tell you they want to give free tuiton, make sure to check the fees first. I know it was quite a shock to many of my son's classmates.

Fortunately he joined the AF guard and in MA they pay 100% tuition, fees and he still gets the gi bill.

[Report1212]

6. I doubt fees are as high in Arkansas

Land is cheap, etc.

[canoeist52]

9. Yep we found that the free tuition was just a small part of the college bill, here iin MA.

[SheilaT]

10. Fees that high have got to be a scam

to make the tuition artificially low.

Back in the day, fees were a small fraction of tuition, and covered things like student admission to games, and basic health care coverage. Some classes, mainly science labs, had attached fees.

But tuition under a thousand bucks but fees over seven thousand? Really.

[Marrah_G]

11. That is all MA state universities and colleges

They get to say they kept tuition low. Romney got to claim that he gave derserving students free tuition........... The truth is far different as you can see.

Google any MA state college and you will see the same.

The one I gave was Salem State where my son goes.

[JPZenger]

7. Low interest loans fine, but free tuition penalizes the blue collar workers

Why should some guy who is a plumber pay for free tuition for some young guy to study philosophy? I'm very concerned about the cost of higher education, but there is no need to make it free. With automatic state merit aid, you may end up just letting a rich kid have money to pay for a sports car instead of tuition. Need based aid makes more sense.

Starting in July, all new federal Stafford loans will carry an interest rate of 6.8%. That is double the rate that currently applies to subsidized Staffords, which are the most common source of loans. This increase will occur unless Congress acts - and the House majority doesn't seem to have any interest in the matter.

[Apophis]

13. Are you saying a degree in philosophy is a waste?

[loudsue]

14. A lot of the recipients of the free tuition are kids of blue collar workers.

I paid 7 % on the college loan I had back in the early 1970's.....I was just looking at those papers the other day. Of course, you could go to an in-state college for a reasonable price back then, but for a woman who could only get a job as a secretary or waitress or retail clerk without a degree (or, sometimes WITH a degree unless you got a nursing or teaching degree), it was still a big struggle to pay for college. While my friends were off having fun, I was working 2 and 3 jobs...which you could also do back then, because employers would give you actual set hours.

I think education should be free all the way through. It is better for society as a whole to have a well-educated citizenry.

[valerief]

8. So they'll be smart enough to someday move to a country with universal healthcare

and one that doesn't threaten to steal retirement safeguards like social security insurance.

[Chisox08]

12. College just like Health Care should be free for everybody.

The return on that investment would be greater then it's overall cost. Allowing people to go to college without crippling debt would allow for more innovation and people would be more willing to take a risk without worrying about how are they going to pay off the student loan debt. They will be less likely to take whatever crappy job that they can get in order to repay their loans. We should be investing in our future instead putting it into the Banksters pockets and blowing it up half way across the world.