Michael Petrilli: Making Community College Free

Michael Petrilli argues that making community college free, is a horrible investment for the United States. He argues if community colleges' dropout rate is higher than the success of graduating, there should not be any encouragement because the college ignores the quality of the education rather focusing on the cost of tuition. Petrilli quotes a statistic about college readiness stating, "40 percent of 12th graders are college-ready, even though nearly 70 percent already head straight into college". The purpose of this statistic is to explain his point that the United States should focus on education reform rather than cost because many students are forced to partake in remediation classes before they can even start their degree, creating an endless abyss that many dropout from. Closing the argument, Petrilli admits, "[there is] no good way to enter adulthood" and expresses while there is a right

For many high school students, community college may seem worse or looked down upon compared to a university. The pressure from biased high schools, friends, and family lead many students not even attempting to apply to any community colleges. Other students could still be struggling upon paying for college even if it is a cheaper community college and may not qualify in a grey area of financial aid. Making not only community college but some colleges free such as New York's free college law, would encourage more students to keep learning. The students would feel less stressed over the cost of their education and would continue to complete their degree, no matter the fear of paying for extra remedial classes. A free college system would introduce more people with degrees to the work force, which could fill the opportunity of more jobs and help eliminate some unemployment for the jobs that require college qualifications that some may not qualify for, thus giving up on their