Toe the Line: College Republicans | Obama's State of the Union address: Community College proposal

By Carter Skeel 02/03/15 10:47pm

Unfortunately, progressives in this country still believe that the perfect society is just one government program away from becoming a reality. If we make enough things “free,” everyone will live happily ever after. Sadly, this is not the case.

To be clear, community colleges and promoting equal opportunity are good things. While Obama’s program is well intentioned, it is also pernicious. It is tailored toward an America that simply doesn’t exist. In our America, high schools are failing. In our America, more than a third of college graduates work jobs that do not require college degrees. The problem isn’t that Americans don’t have enough degrees. The problem is that the degrees Americans do get aren’t worth much. The solution, then, is not to make community college free. This would not enhance — and would arguably hinder — the quality of our educational system. Rather, we must improve our elementary, middle and high schools. Improving the quality of these schools would do more to address the educational problems we face than simply tacking on more years of schooling to the end.

That being said, community colleges deserve our support. They provide valuable services to many, from students in need of remedial help to adults wishing to learn a new skill. The success of local community colleges should be celebrated. Yet Obama’s program would undermine much of what makes community college valuable. For one, it would lead to extensive grade inflation, as community colleges look to retain their rankings. Second, it would discourage innovation. Many community colleges already have large waiting lists; with even higher demand, there would be little incentive to innovate.

Further, it is not clear that an inability to pay tuition is an issue for potential community college students. Comprehensive subsidies exist already. What less advantaged students cannot pay for — namely necessary non-tuition expenses — is not covered.

Finally, Obama’s program could encourage well-qualified applicants from disadvantaged backgrounds to “settle” for community college. This already occurs — it is known as “undermatching” — and the program would only exacerbate this phenomenon.

In all of this, I have not even mentioned the economic cost of this program. Even if Obama’s program did have merits, the economic realities should not be overlooked. Despite suggestions to the contrary, “free” government programs are never really free. Education is worth our time and our money, but our solutions must address the problems, not just sound nice in speeches.

Carter Skeel

C’15

College Republicans representative

Toe the Line examines issues from two different sides. Click here to see the Penn Democrats stance.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.