Dive Brief:
- With Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager promoting the idea of debt-free college, the issue has become an official theme of the 2016 Democratic primary.
- Inside Higher Ed reports the policy is among the most ambitious higher education initiatives presented by presidential candidates in several decades.
- One concern with the new focus on a debt-free bachelor’s degree is that it will overshadow the more accessible, and also recently promoted, goal of free community college for all, according to the article.
Dive Insight:
Hillary Clinton has been questioned by others in the Democratic party for weeks about her stance on debt-free college, a proposal first introduced by the most liberal members of Congress. Clinton’s newly declared rival for the Democratic nomination is Sen. Bernie Sanders, a perennial champion of the working and middle classes. Supporting this proposal is good campaign strategy, but if the frenzy of ambitious election stances overpowers the already slim chance of free community college making it through Congress, it would be a real loss for many.