OPINION:
With less than two months to go, the 2024 presidential election is nearing its final stretch. While Donald Trump and the Republican Party have made inflation, border security, and the economy their top issues, it’s refreshing to see another concern get outsized attention from the campaign: higher education. For too long, this important issue hasn’t been part of the policy discussion. And if Republicans offer solutions to the current administration’s incompetence and bias, it could be a winning message in November.
Higher education has become a campaign issue because college affordability and accessibility is now a real kitchen table issue for millions of American families. Nearly half of parents say they would prefer not to send their children to a traditional four-year college after high school, and two-thirds of high-school students think they will be just fine without a college degree. According to recent data the average cost per year to attend a private nonprofit four-year school was a whopping $40,000.
Today, most traditional colleges fail to equip students with marketable skills to take into the workforce. They do, however, trap them in student loan debt that is becoming increasingly difficult to repay.
Students need better options. Despite the cost, many Americans still see long-term value in earning a traditional four-year degree, but many others do not. Exacerbating the problem, the U.S. Department of Education is closing off alternative options through enforcement actions and crippling regulations by ideological bureaucrats. Instead, the Department of Education is going after career colleges and proprietary schools, cutting off alternatives to the expensive four-year schools.
Notably, two harmful regulations 90/10 and gainful employment will potentially lock out thousands of students from schools the department doesn’t like. The regulatory burden of these rules only apply to a small segment of higher education institutions, ignoring the true drivers of the college affordability crisis: private non-profit schools.
By stifling students’ ability to attend programs at career colleges, the department instead pushes students to community colleges and traditional private and public colleges many sought to avoid.
Republicans recognize that alternatives to the traditional four-year school will help Americans over the long-term, which is why their 2024 party platform is geared toward reforming our higher education system. Not since the advancing of land-grant colleges in the 19th century has a party’s platform been so focused on higher education issues. It’s a step in the right direction, showing how a Republican administration will be focused on governing and making government work better for all Americans and students.
Though the entire platform is shorter than it was in 2016, it’s clear that education is still a top issue. As the platform notes, “to reduce the cost of Higher Education, Republicans will support the creation of additional, drastically more affordable alternatives to a traditional four-year College degree.” This means making it easier to become a welder or electrician, rather than more degrees in gender studies or other unmarketable areas of study.
That’s why so many people choose to attend career colleges and proprietary schools. They want to learn real skills in health care, criminal justice, and information technology, among many others. Career colleges help equip students with hands-on experience in fields such as public safety, medical and nursing, cosmetology, senior care, and much more. Importantly, programs at career colleges are usually more affordable and offer significantly greater flexibility than traditional four-year schools.
The platform also promises to “prepare students for great jobs and careers, supporting project-based learning and schools that offer meaningful work experience.” Equipping the next generation with skills to succeed is incredibly important, especially as the skills gap continues to widen in sensitive areas like elder care, health care, and IT.
Americans have seen the failed record of the Biden-Harris Department of Education. With Republicans offering a real alternative, the difference could not be starker. Under this administration, we’ve seen the department fumble its FAFSA roll out, offer unconstitutional student loan bailouts, cut off access to higher education alternatives, and ignore antisemitic protests across college campuses. Republicans will offer real solutions to expand access, cut costs, and deliver for the next generation of workers.
The results of this election may be close, but on education issues, the two parties are nowhere near each other.
• Matthew Kandrach is president of Consumer Action for a Strong Economy
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