Before you dismiss President Obama’s proposal of two years of free community college as frivolous government spending, let me toss a number out at you: 500%.
That’s roughly how much college costs have increased between 1985 and today.
Compare that with wages, which have increased by about 140% over the same time period and you begin to understand why Americans owe $1.4 trillion in student loan debt.
Had the rise in college costs stayed in line with the inflation, the $10,000 to send your kid to school in 1985 would have been $21,947.12 today. Instead it’s over $50,000.
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