The great thing about supporting tuition-free public college in Minnesota is that for many it is already a reality. There are scholarships awarded to students who strive for them. Pell Grants enable children of low income families to attend two and even four year colleges tuition free. If your interest is in a high demand vocation, like software design, you may be able to have an employer cover your education costs contingent on a promise to work for a given period of time.

The benefits of these policies far out weigh the cost of education. But this patchwork of benefits can be difficult to navigate and leaves many students behind. Student debt is a 1.3 trillion dollar burden for American students collectively. In the last few years, Minnesota has ranked fifth in highest student debt nationally. As tuition rates flare, attendance and graduation rates fall and fail to compete globally. America is currently 11th place in international graduation rates. Tuition-free college nations, like Switzerland and Norway, are in the lead.

I believe Minnesota has the support of its citizens to do better. Yet large campaign contributions from special interest groups will continue to churn out candidates that pass policies in favor of debtors over college students. Such as the inability for an individual to have their student debt forgiven in bankruptcy court. No other enterprise can make such a claim.

The logistics of taking a free market enterprise, such as higher education, and turning it into a state owned nonprofit is no small matter, but colleges in America have done exactly that, in reverse. Recently as thirty years ago the University of California did not charge tuition at all. The first step in making Minnesota a purveyor of tuition-free public college is to get to know what your state candidates stand for. The second step is to hold them accountable at the ballot box because student debt is a serious economic problem and tuition-free public college is an attainable political solution for future students.

Thomas Martinez

Hayward