DC council thinking about giving every student $100k for college

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is not unprecedented:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/16/magazine/kalamazoo-mich-the-city-that-pays-for-college.html?_r=0

Though the main difference with the program in Kalamazoo is that the students must attend a Michigan public university or community college (and it was a private donation, not city funded). I have relatives in Kalamazoo using this program and it is already making a big difference.

In practice, it could revitalize DCPS and charters beyond elementary school. Families would stick around and work to make it happen if the grant is that significant. It could revitalize the economy if people stay in the city for the long haul. I really hope they pass this. It would be a game changer.

Is this why Detroit is broke.

No, sorry, Detroit went broke over graft and short-sighted policies. In comparison, this is smart policy-making, probably one that pays for itself in increased tax revenue within a decade or so.

Kalamazoo, not Detroit. And it was a private gift, not public funds. Private or public, it is smart, and forward thinking - an investment in the future, something very few of our politicians think about these days. It would be nice to see DC policy that invests in children in addition to developers.

Can you please show us a study proving that excluding students whose parents make over X from in-state tuition or equivalent is smart policy? The smart policy would be to link aid to academic performance either at school or at the college level.

[Anonymous]

We can barely afford our high schools...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:if the kids fail out they should have to pay it back

Damned mooching young bucks with their welfare Cadillacs and their food stamp steaks!

I like you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:$250k income limit. I think it's a great idea...if we can afford it.

http://wamu.org/news/13/10/16/dc_legislator_proposes_giving_100000_for_college_tuition_to_students

Oh sure, that will be totally free too! Whee - everything is free! Nobody has to pay for anything - let's just "tax the rich" (oh wait, believe it or not - that's you!)

[Anonymous]

Are Maryland residents eligible too? That would mean free preschool and college courtesy of DC tax payers. Awesome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hope and pray this goes through…4 kids in public.

Ditto!

[Anonymous]

ALL DC RESIDENTS SHOULD GET THIS!! There are several students who attend private schools who come from families that meet the requirement and they should benefit from this too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:ALL DC RESIDENTS SHOULD GET THIS!! There are several students who attend private schools who come from families that meet the requirement and they should benefit from this too.

Totally agree that all students whether public, charter, private, or homeschool should get this!

[Anonymous]

Call Catania and other council members to let them know that this should apply to all students in DC, not just charter and public school students.

[Anonymous]

No, private school students shouldn't get the money. This is an incentive to get people to stick with public schools so that the public school system can improve.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, private school students shouldn't get the money. This is an incentive to get people to stick with public schools so that the public school system can improve.

I see it more as an incentive to to get people to stay in the city. Many people leave when kids get older, not just for better schools, but for better in-state options for their kids. This new program should follow the same guidelines as the current program. Private school residents pay taxes too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, private school students shouldn't get the money. This is an incentive to get people to stick with public schools so that the public school system can improve.

I see it more as an incentive to to get people to stay in the city. Many people leave when kids get older, not just for better schools, but for better in-state options for their kids. This new program should follow the same guidelines as the current program. Private school residents pay taxes too.

And people who have no kids also pay taxes. This program is and should continue to be about getting people to stay in the public system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not just simplify it by enabling DC residents to claim in-state tuition at any public university? That would be a lot easier to administer and would ideally not be overly burdensome on any particular state. If, in reality, it ended up that DC residents wound up going disproportionately to public schools in VA and MD, then just think of it as a trade-off for DC not being able to impose a commuter tax.

DC has a population of what, 500,000? How many graduating college-bound seniors are we actually talking about?

As of 2012, DC had a population of 632,323 and DCPS had 43,866 students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$250k income limit. I think it's a great idea...if we can afford it.

http://wamu.org/news/13/10/16/dc_legislator_proposes_giving_100000_for_college_tuition_to_students

Oh sure, that will be totally free too! Whee - everything is free! Nobody has to pay for anything - let's just "tax the rich" (oh wait, believe it or not - that's you!)

As a mother raising three kids on less than half the income limit, I have to say that $250K is indeed rich, particularly in DC, where the median income is $84K!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, private school students shouldn't get the money. This is an incentive to get people to stick with public schools so that the public school system can improve.

I see it more as an incentive to to get people to stay in the city. Many people leave when kids get older, not just for better schools, but for better in-state options for their kids. This new program should follow the same guidelines as the current program. Private school residents pay taxes too.

And people who have no kids also pay taxes. This program is and should continue to be about getting people to stay in the public system.

You are not getting it. DC loses tax monies from people who leave DC to be eligible for in-state college tuition elsewhere since DC does not have a great state university. The loss of these tax monies hurts DC.

Also, the proposal applies not only to public schools but also to charter schools. It should be expanded to include all DC students.