Why Education Should Be Free

Scott Hines.

For most, the single greatest barrier to accessing higher education is cost. In the last decade, tuition has skyrocketed across the United States. Crippling student loan debt in America has now surpassed a staggering $1 trillion. Many students find the return on investment just isn’t there and they’re walking away from college without graduating, disenfranchised and deeply in debt. The international community is even less likely to attend college, with less than five percent of the world’s population ever achieving post-secondary education of any kind.
Last year, I attended a global education conference hosted by Goldman Sachs at Stanford University. The auditorium was filled with 500 dark suits, hoping to capitalize on the hottest investment opportunities in the education space. The moderator of a panel asked, by a show of hands, who in the room thought college education should be “free”. Curtis Pickering, Chairman and CEO of WEU, and I exuberantly shot up our hands. We thought to ourselves, who wouldn’t want to deliver free education to the masses? Think of the good that could be done educating everyone. As we looked around, not another hand in the crowd of suits was raised. We were alone in our belief, and dumbfounded. One of the panelists, indignant at the very question, responded sarcastically “Free? Then everyone would have a college degree.” The room rumbled with quiet laughter – how preposterous a thought!
Classism has been around for centuries. There isn’t much incentive for the wealthy to lift the rest of society; and it is intriguing to see how our educational systems sustain the cycle of classism. Though charitable giving is part of elitist culture, it is rarely done with sacrifice. As the Mayor of an affluent community, I attend numerous charity galas. I watch as we, the elite, write our checks, take pride in our philanthropy and jump to congratulate one another on our convenient generosity.