Free SUNY College Tuition? That Raises Lots of Questions

Kim Dancy was quoted in the Buffalo News about the implications of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's free tuition plan:

But today’s students bear much more of the cost of higher education than 10 or 20 years ago. Public college tuition used to be low enough that many students could work a summer job and part-time during the semester to pay their way.

Not anymore, said Kim Dancy, policy analyst for the New America Foundation.

“In recent years, we’ve seen a huge increase in what public institutions are charging students in a way that minimum wage salaries haven’t kept up with,” said Dancy.

Besides, an individual’s college education translates into societal benefits, so taxpayer contribution to that education is an investment in the broader community, said Katherine S. Conway-Turner, president of SUNY Buffalo State College.

“It’s a public good,” she said. “It’s good for our communities when people have degrees. It’s good for kids. It’s good for families. It has cascading collateral benefits.”

Dancy has studied the idea of free college since Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, made it a centerpiece of his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. Sanders joined Cuomo at LaGuardia Community College in Queens for the governor’s announcement and urged state legislators to support the free tuition plan.

...

The Cuomo plan would require students to enroll full time to receive free tuition - a stipulation that could be a problem, especially for community college students, who often attend part time because they have jobs.

“It seems like it’s going to limit your ability to have a job to pay for your living expenses,” said Dancy. “Students are still likely going to have to borrow to pay for their living expenses.”