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March 2015 - Resolved: In the United States, students should be guaranteed two years of free tuition to a community or technical college.Tuition: sum of money charged for teaching or instruction by a school, college, or universityDoes not cover ancillary costs Tuition is limited to just community college/technical collegeActor: US GovernmentThis is who would implement the “free tuition” plan PRO ArgumentsHow big of an issue is finances and tuition? Money is a big factor in determining college choice75% of Americans feel that college is unaffordable Therefore, community college is NOT just for those less well off or the poor Goal: reduce gap between rich and poorTransfersThis plan could help those wanting to transfer from community colleges to bigger universities Ex: HCC first two years, to A&M last two yearsBut how prevalent is this? (do your research, this is important and can be a contention in your case…)Why are college degrees important?Leads to greater lifetime income = stability Lots of great statistics online for this Goal of these type of programs is to give Americans greater access to jobs Even just an associate degree leads to greater incomeWhat is an associate’s degree?Two year degree commonly acquired from community college programs Gives more access to people to college = good for US economy Financial Aid CurrentlyPell GrantsMeant to cover tuition and books/some amount of room and boardIssue: only cover lower percentiles of income bracket (very poor)So, this leaves out plenty of “deserving” people Other issue: only covers 60% of necessary aid This is the main alternative to the fully paid system (this is the system of the status quo)Do your research on Pell Grants—this is a major topic in this resolution Financial Aid is determined on a case by case basis by the FAFSA and CIS profileIn some circumstances you may not qualify under FAFSA or CIS, but still have need for aid In this resolution, it is UNCLEAR if this Pell Grant program would continue if this free tuition plan was introducedThis could be an argument either way in your case…StatisticsBecause more people are going to community colleges, it leads to economic benefits for the USA overallMore jobs move to the US from elsewhere, more American jobs, etc. CON Arguments “Overcrowding”Already hard to get classes in community colleges, with this plan the problem would only increase and worsen Seats are chosen first come first serve This would impact ALL students Ex: California community colleges, NYC community collegesAnother problem is that this would push back “degree times”—so might not finish in two years, but in three (and have to pay the third year)For the poorest of the poor, they would not be able to pay for this third year Graduation Rates12% of those entering community colleges graduate on timeAlthough, these statistics vary depending on the source…do some leg work and find the sources online If give people free tuition, will not have any “skin in the game” If I am not invested in my education, I will not care so much about it…This argument however, is pretty weak—hard to find psychological warrants that justify this point Auxiliary CostsStill need to pay books, fees, place to live, transportation Free tuition does not cover all these needsFind the statistics on what percentage overall the auxiliary costs are in comparison to the tuition costs…you may be surprised This is a major argument on the CON side “Undermatching” When have free community college, people who would otherwise go to a 4 year university would go to a 2 year university because it is freeHistorically, these people would be less likely to then move on to 4 year universities = problematic for US economy This leads to “smarter” students limiting themselves and going to less challenging schools Fringe IdeasAdjunct Professors To deal with the surge in enrollment that would occur because of free tuition, more adjunct professors would be hired They are really underpaid, less health benefits, overworked, etc. So, while you are sending more kids to community college, they are getting taught by overworked professors = lower quality of education = lower standards Do some research on your own to flesh out this idea ................
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