Dive Summary:
- Writing in Rolling Stone, Rebecca Nathanson asks if struggles such as the recent battle to keep Cooper Union free of charge are bringing attention to the rising costs of college at both public and private schools.
- She cites Oregon's move to look into allowing students at the state's public universities to attend college without paying first, as long as they agree to pay a percentage of their income after graduating.
- Nathanson also points out that nationwide tuition has increased 1,120% in the last 35 years, rising faster than the rate of inflation; meanwhile, state and local funding for higher education dropped 7% in 2012.
From the article:
... "Now, as a result of the increase in activism and lobbying work that's been happening, the public is starting to pay attention. We're starting to have a real national debate over what kind of educational system we want to have in this country. And the more prominent that debate becomes, the more people start tuning in to that debate, the better it is for students." ...
