This article focuses on the free tuition being offered by state universities in New York. Part of the program is a guarantee that the college student will remain in state for as many years as they received the free tuition or be forced to pay back the loan.
I wonder how many people will take advantage of the opportunity and accept being locked into the state for 4+ years. I know that many students are going to be thankful for this opportunity, but what about private colleges?
Is this the end of private education?
I doubt it. What will require private education to change is not public education becoming “free” (which it isn’t, of course), but the consuming public deciding that (a) both public and private education are too expensive, and (b) a lot of what is being paid for is ‘fluff” and not necessary. The first schools to figure this out are going to hit the jackpot.