Free community college does not exist unless you live in a universe where paying $60 billion over ten years is ‘free.’ Arielle Mueller from Hillsdale College’s The Collegian has the story.

There is no ‘free’ community college

“We still live in a country where too many bright, striving Americans are priced out of the education they need,” said President Obama on Tuesday night, in his State of the Union speech. “That’s why I’m sending this Congress a bold new plan to lower the cost of community college — to zero.”

The president’s words reminded me of my own expe­rience. Before coming to Hillsdale College, I went to a state university, where I worked two jobs to help pay my bills. I learned that education is an investment that requires sacrifice — and I came to appreciate one of my father’s favorite sayings: “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

Obama hopes to make two years of community college free for up to nine million Americans, a plan he dubs America’s College Promise. Under this program, federal funding would absorb 75 percent of the average cost of community college, while states would contribute the remaining funds. To be eligible, students must maintain a 2.5 GPA and “make steady progress” toward grad­uation. Community colleges would then have to award voca­tional certificates or permit students to transfer to four-year colleges with half the credits needed for a bachelor’s degree.

Upon first glance, the president’s proposal seems like a good solution to a growing problem. Offering a free education would equip more students with the knowledge and skills they need to compete in our growing global economy but without the heavy burden of debt. A free education seems too good to be true.

So what’s the catch?

Obama may try to sell his proposal as “free,” but it comes at a monu­mental cost to the American people. Taxpayers will face a price tag of $60 billion over ten years. These taxpayers are all of us, including the “veterans and single parents” who, as Obama suggested in his speech, are the target bene­fi­ciaries. The same people who receive Obama’s free education will be paying it back later through higher taxes and mounting national debt.

Free tuition will not auto­mat­ically improve student performance either. It might increase enrollment, but it would not provide the moti­vation to do well. When something is given for granted, people take it for granted.