comment by kleinbl00

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kleinbl00 · 4685 days ago · link · · parent · post: Obama vs. Colleges: It’s About Time!

A decade ago, the state was paying 80 percent of the cost to educate a student at Washington's flagship university; students paid 20 percent. Now, students pay 70 percent; UW students are paying $10,346 in in-state tuition this year.

"They really should know better. This really is political theater of the worst sort," Young said.

. . .

Western Washington University President Bruce Shepard accused Obama of blaming the victim.

Universities aren't gouging students; state government is taking care of that on its own, he said.

"The fact is the taxpayers have pulled their money back," Shepard said.

Thanks to university efficiency, the full cost to educate students at Western has gone down since 2003 - from $9,818 to $9,630. But the share of that cost covered by tuition has risen from $4,000 in 2003 to $6,468 this year.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2017355533_a...

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b_b · 4685 days ago · link ·

The State is to blame for a lot of this (not WA specifically, but all states). I think part of the problem is that many state legislatures see college tuition support as an expense and not an investment. Legislatures would be smart to have in state tuition and out of state tuition, as they already do, but add another category of in state tuition with a contract to stay in the sate for a period of time after graduation. I think the states would be more willing to help students if they knew they weren't going to leave as soon as they graduated, which is a big problem here in MI, and I'm sure some other places.

If the federal gov't mandates that tuition doesn't increase, but the legislature cuts funds further, then what? The math doesn't add up, so it sounds like election year pandering to me.