Editorial: ‘Free’ isn’t on a platter

To their credit, the program planners are expecting students to work for the privilege of attending college. The combination of work and school will offer students a better complement of skills as they enter the working world.

According to a Sept. 19 Oregonian story, students would be expected to work 15 hours a week during the school year and full time during the summer at a job paying at least minimum wage. That adds up to about $6,000 a years toward tuition or living expenses.

Parents would also be expected to pay if federal financial aid formulas say they can afford it. State aid would kick in once the parents pay the federal “expected family contribution.”

The state plan would allow students with normal expenses to attend community college debt-free for two years.

That’s a pretty good deal.

Even though community college is the most economical option for in-state students — and Columbia Columbia Community College is among the most affordable of them — it still can take a healthy chunk out of a family’s budget. That’s particularly true for low-income working families.

CGCC tuition and fees are a little more than $100 a credit, or about $1,200 for a 12-credit full-time schedule. That doesn’t include the Gorge Scholars free tuition gorge graduates receive for maintaining a 3.5 GPA average.

Of course, that doesn’t include books and lodging, but it’s still easier on the budget than most other options. And students who live at home can make the financial burden easier on themselves and their parents.

Kitzhaber’s plan has a goal of 40 percent of Oregon students graduating high school, 40 percent attending higher education and 20 percent earning at least a bachelor’s degree.

Unfortunately, the 40-40-20 plan doesn’t account for the students who wouldn’t attend college or vocational training past high school age even if it was entirely free with no strings attached.

What’s missing is revival and upgrading of vocational programs at the high school level, which have been gutted in the past two decades by state budget cuts.

In the past, job-oriented programs for students that aren’t college-bound helped keep students in school who weren’t academically oriented. And they helped prepare students for skilled jobs right out of high school.

In the past, those courses were things like mechanics, industrial arts and drafting. Today, many technical employers are looking less for college degrees to prove proficiency than proof of skills.

Unless Kitzhaber’s plan factors in those students, the plan will have this one gaping hole.

North Wasco County School District is trying to address that lack with special programs like the Wahtonka Community School, which takes a more hands-on, project-based approach to education, partnering with local businesses and organizations.

Programs like these will help bridge the gap for students who might otherwise fall through the cracks.