It’s becoming a luxury for many; yet failing to have a college degree can have significant financial repercussions.

I’m referring to the need for a college education and its first cousin, the ability to pay for that education. A few simple facts. Having a college education results in huge, lifetime dividends.  A person with a college degree, on average, will earn $1.4 million more than someone with only a high school diploma, according to a 2011 U.S. Census Report. That bears repeating:  $1.4 million more. To put it in even more unambiguous language, if you started working at 22 and retired at 62, that would mean $2,916.66 more each month during that 40-year career.  (Of course, this advantage is slight if at all at the beginning of a career and increases later as one advances professionally.) For anyone pondering why they should go to college, the numbers provide a stark reality.

The costs of graduating, however, are having a dulling effect on the shiny benefits of attending and graduating from college. College costs have continued to rise for decades, beating out the rate of inflation for 30 years. The average student loan is $28,400 — a huge burden to bear for a twenty-something person.  I have a friend who explains it this way: “Your son goes to college and leaves the institution with a debt equaling the national average,” he told me.  “He meets a girl in college, and they fall in love. She too graduates with a degree and the same loan amount. They marry within a year, and the “dowry” to themselves is $56,800, and they’re just starting out in life. Regardless of future potential income, that’s an anchor that will be a drag on future earning for years, if not decades.”

While I have always been concerned about college costs, it is hitting home for me now these days. My oldest son, who I affectionately call “The Franchise”, begins college this fall and I have a firsthand appreciation as to how we are pricing college out of the reach of the middle class.  The idea that college is becoming a “luxury item” is a terrible thought to contemplate. I have pointed out the benefits of attending school, but no one should be forced — either student or parents — to line up for the poorhouse or accept to be anchored to payments, which can cause a financial drowning.

There is hope and, even more appropriately, a possible solution. I have introduced a proposal, ACR220, which encourages “four-year institutions of higher education to offer baccalaureate degree programs that cost no more than $10,000 in tuition and fees.” To be clear, that’s $10,000 for the entire degree and not just an academic year (or semester).  One of the main policy challenges in the area of higher education is affordability, and more importantly, the need to think differently as to how we tackle this problem. Far too often, we have relied on policies that seek to subsidize the escalating cost of a college degree, without realistically looking at driving down that growing price tag.

Why is this important?

Our nation’s economy demands a workforce that possesses increasing levels of knowledge and skills that are best attributable to a college degree. Absent a system that can produce enough graduates to meet this demand, we will cede ground to other countries that are more prepared to deliver the type of workers that a 21^st century economy requires. This in my opinion is of critical importance to our nation’s economic and security interests. We must ensure that our country has the skilled workforce and educated citizenry necessary to sustain economic growth and nurture an environment of shared prosperity.

Don’t just take my word for it, a 2013 study by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and Workforce that found the United States economy will have a shortfall of 5 million college-educated workers. Furthermore, by 2020, 65% of all jobs will require a bachelor or associate degree or some other education beyond high school. Without a higher education framework that reduces the cost of attaining a college degree, we will be forced to look elsewhere to fill those openings.

This idea is not a pie-in-the-sky idea, nor is it wishful thinking. Some states, such as Texas and Florida, are at the forefront of this movement. Texas A&M-San Antonio became the first institution of higher education in Texas to offer a bachelor’s degree in information technology for less than $10,000.  Twelve colleges in Florida are either developing proposals (or are in the process) for $10,000 bachelor’s degree programs. Oklahoma and Oregon are also considering similar proposals, and Southern New Hampshire University has instituted its College for ALL Program, which offers a $10,000 competency-based bachelor’s degree.

We simply cannot afford as a state and as a nation, to allow college costs to continue to rise, thus elevating the opportunity to pursue college as a sign of “luxury” status in our society. ACR220 is designed to jump start this critical conversation that is occurring at countless family tables in New Jersey every night: “How can we make college more affordable?” Offering baccalaureate degree programs that cost no more than $10,000 in tuition and fees will greatly increase the ability of New Jersey students to attend an institution of higher education and acquire the training needed to secure good, high-paying jobs and will significantly reduce their student loan debt. That’s my take. What’s your take?

It’s becoming a luxury for many; yet failing to have a college degree can have significant financial repercussions.

I’m referring to the need for a college education and its first cousin, the ability to pay for that education. A few simple facts. Having a college education results in huge, lifetime dividends.  A person with a college degree, on average, will earn $1.4 million more than someone with only a high school diploma, according to a 2011 U.S. Census Report. That bears repeating:  $1.4 million more. To put it in even more unambiguous language, if you started working at 22 and retired at 62, that would mean $2,916.66 more each month during that 40-year career.  (Of course, this advantage is slight if at all at the beginning of a career and increases later as one advances professionally.) For anyone pondering why they should go to college, the numbers provide a stark reality.

The costs of graduating, however, are having a dulling effect on the shiny benefits of attending and graduating from college. College costs have continued to rise for decades, beating out the rate of inflation for 30 years. The average student loan is $28,400 — a huge burden to bear for a twenty-something person.  I have a friend who explains it this way: “Your son goes to college and leaves the institution with a debt equaling the national average,” he told me.  “He meets a girl in college, and they fall in love. She too graduates with a degree and the same loan amount. They marry within a year, and the “dowry” to themselves is $56,800, and they’re just starting out in life. Regardless of future potential income, that’s an anchor that will be a drag on future earning for years, if not decades.”

While I have always been concerned about college costs, it is hitting home for me now these days. My oldest son, who I affectionately call “The Franchise”, begins college this fall and I have a firsthand appreciation as to how we are pricing college out of the reach of the middle class.  The idea that college is becoming a “luxury item” is a terrible thought to contemplate. I have pointed out the benefits of attending school, but no one should be forced — either student or parents — to line up for the poorhouse or accept to be anchored to payments, which can cause a financial drowning.

There is hope and, even more appropriately, a possible solution. I have introduced a proposal, ACR220, which encourages “four-year institutions of higher education to offer baccalaureate degree programs that cost no more than $10,000 in tuition and fees.” To be clear, that’s $10,000 for the entire degree and not just an academic year (or semester).  One of the main policy challenges in the area of higher education is affordability, and more importantly, the need to think differently as to how we tackle this problem. Far too often, we have relied on policies that seek to subsidize the escalating cost of a college degree, without realistically looking at driving down that growing price tag.

Why is this important?

Our nation’s economy demands a workforce that possesses increasing levels of knowledge and skills that are best attributable to a college degree. Absent a system that can produce enough graduates to meet this demand, we will cede ground to other countries that are more prepared to deliver the type of workers that a 21^st century economy requires. This in my opinion is of critical importance to our nation’s economic and security interests. We must ensure that our country has the skilled workforce and educated citizenry necessary to sustain economic growth and nurture an environment of shared prosperity.

Don’t just take my word for it, a 2013 study by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and Workforce that found the United States economy will have a shortfall of 5 million college-educated workers. Furthermore, by 2020, 65% of all jobs will require a bachelor or associate degree or some other education beyond high school. Without a higher education framework that reduces the cost of attaining a college degree, we will be forced to look elsewhere to fill those openings.

This idea is not a pie-in-the-sky idea, nor is it wishful thinking. Some states, such as Texas and Florida, are at the forefront of this movement. Texas A&M-San Antonio became the first institution of higher education in Texas to offer a bachelor’s degree in information technology for less than $10,000.  Twelve colleges in Florida are either developing proposals (or are in the process) for $10,000 bachelor’s degree programs. Oklahoma and Oregon are also considering similar proposals, and Southern New Hampshire University has instituted its College for ALL Program, which offers a $10,000 competency-based bachelor’s degree.

We simply cannot afford as a state and as a nation, to allow college costs to continue to rise, thus elevating the opportunity to pursue college as a sign of “luxury” status in our society. ACR220 is designed to jump start this critical conversation that is occurring at countless family tables in New Jersey every night: “How can we make college more affordable?” Offering baccalaureate degree programs that cost no more than $10,000 in tuition and fees will greatly increase the ability of New Jersey students to attend an institution of higher education and acquire the training needed to secure good, high-paying jobs and will significantly reduce their student loan debt. That’s my take. What’s your take?