President Obama announced a plan to make higher education more accessible for all. He presented a plan to make community college free for students willing to work hard. This initiative is an outstanding step in a positive direction. Working students will have a chance to enroll in school full time which will increase their chances of graduation.

The increasing cost of college education has been an ongoing issue for many years. The cause of this stems back to institutions struggling to manage their costs and student funding getting cut by states with tight budget plans. These factors have led to increased tuition across the board. The federal government also plays a role in this pricing. Instead of holding schools accountable, the government offered grants, loans, and tax relief for students to help them afford their education. This approach has led to other problems. Students then become inundated with student loan debt while states are inclined to continue raising tuition under increasing state budget cuts. Enrollment was then allowed to stay high despite low income families struggling and parent income getting drained to pay tuition.

Community college is moving toward being free through President Obama’s proposal that 75 percent of tuition be paid by the federal government. This would apply to students who are taking classes at a half-time status or more. The remaining cost would be handled by the participating state. This model encourages states to manage their institutional costs for community colleges, where spending has not grown drastically over the past few years.

To read more about this forward moving education initiative, visit Slate.com here.