The demands of the workplace today are leaning toward a more educated employee. Many businesses are looking for degree holding, college graduates. Making it a must for today’s youth to attend college to be in the running for a decent job. But to many students today, college is out of the question, solely due to the high tuition costs. Many high school graduates are forced to directly start a full-time job, because the money isn’t there for college.The 1999 National Survey of Americas Families found that Florida is well below the national average on many economic levels. The Survey found that Florida has a large amount of children in families that experience worries about or difficulties affording food, children with no health insurance, nonelderly adults with no health insurance, and children with no usual source of health care. According to the Urban Institute, the median income for a family with children is $33,250, with 25.9% of Florida’s population having an economic level below poverty.The Chronicle of Higher Education estimated the average cost for a four-year public college tuition at $3,510 for an academic year. This does not include books, room and board, and transportation. Books and supplies estimated cost is $704, and room and board costs $4,960 for residents and $2,444 for commuters. In total, The Chronicle estimated the costs of an academic year at $11, 338 for a resident on campus, for a commuter the estimate is $9,229. If Florida families cannot afford health care let alone food, how can they afford to attend college? My proposal is to abolish the costs of tuition and books. A college education is essential in today’s society to obtain a well-paying job. For many families living in Florida, sending a child to college is virtually impossible. This leaves the child at a dead end, forcing him or her to work-full time with only a high school diploma at hand. The costs of college should be...
