President Barack Obama's "America's College Promise" seeks to make two years of community or technical college "as free and universal as high school." It requires that students, community and technical colleges and states meet criteria to participate. The program, estimated to cost the federal government $60 billion over 10 years, could save students an average $3,800 in tuition per year. The White House estimates that if every state opted in, about 9 million students could be helped.
Here's the criteria:
— Students would have to go to school at least half-time, maintain a 2.5 grade point average and make progress toward a degree.
— Colleges would have to offer programs that either have academic programs that fully transfer to four-year schools or job training programs with high graduation rates that lead to degrees and certificates sought by employers.
— States would have to provide about a quarter of the costs of the program, maintain existing education investments and work to reduce the need for remedial classes and repeated courses.
