Michigan 2020 Plan to Pay for College Tuition – Michigan Senate Democratic leaders have proposed a Michigan 2020 plan which would allow Michigan high school graduates to have their tuition and associated costs paid for through their 4 year college undergrad program. The new Michigan 2020 Plan would provide grants for high school graduates that choose any of Michigan’s public community colleges or public universities. The maximum amount of the grant would be equal to the media tuition level of all Michigan’s public universities. If the cost of tuition exceeds the grant amount, the student (or parents) would be required to pay the difference.
The Michigan 2020 Plan would happen without raising taxes. So how is this going to be funded? The funding will come from reducing the outdated tax credits from major corporations, and closing the loopholes that allowed for these companies to avoid paying taxes. Michigan gives up $35 billion annually on these tax expenditures. The elimination of just 10% of these tax credits and loopholes will yield $3.5 billion. The total estimated cost of the Michigan 2020 program is $1.8 billion/year once it is fully implemented. Michigan would have more than enough money available to fund this education program for generations to come.
Michigan has seen an alarming number of high school students depart for out-of-state colleges due to the state’s current lack of incentives to keep students in Michigan public universities and colleges. Recent failed bond proposals to enhance technology and education in secondary schools have already made the road to compete with the rest of nation’s best and brightest difficult. School districts across Michigan have almost universally seen their budgets slashed within recent years.
If the proposed Michigan 2020 Plan is passed it could have an immediate positive impact on Michigan’s economy. The hopes for the Michigan 2020 Plan include reducing astronomical student loan debt while providing Michigan companies with a bright talent pool of locally educated college graduates.
The obvious challenge of the Michigan 2020 Plan is the uncertainty that rewarding jobs and careers will be waiting for the students when they reach the end of the educational tunnel. Michigan currently faces depressed salaries for young graduates in Technology fields. Also, university admission guidelines will not likely change so the competition for high school students wishing to attend an upper echelon Michigan university or college will become even more fierce.
The Michigan 2020 Plan appears to be the first overtly ambitious effort to address the decade’s old problem of Michigan losing its brightest young minds to the rest of the country.
Michigan 2020 Plan Source: Michigan2020.com.
