that would not allow the nation to support every college student who attends a two year college. There are too many questions and concerns about offering two years of free higher education to everyone. College is not for everyone, and certainly will never be FREE.
How would community colleges be able to afford to keep their doors open?
There are more expenses than people realize to keep a facility like a community college up and running. Aside from the administration and instructional staff, community colleges need support staff to keep up with things like record keeping, filling, enrollment, etc. Where will the money come from to pay for expenses like building maintenance, grounds maintenance, etc.? Do you think the facility magically cleans itself, who do you think keeps the restrooms clean the floors vacuumed or mopped, etc.? The maintenance and custodial staff are an essential part of keeping a facility running properly, they work hard to keep the facility in working order. According to the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education records, in 2015 the budget for Seminole State College was $11,414,062 dollars; 17.8 percent of the budget (2,022,226) went to the cost of maintenance operations. Building maintenance is a big expense that most people don’t even consider. If tuition is free where will these colleges get the money to pay these expenses? Raising taxes, that is where the money to pay for such expenses would come from. You really can’t consider it “FREE” if you are paying for it through your taxes. There is really no such thing as
“FREE.”