Hillary Rodham Clinton. Photo courtesy of the Clinton campaign.

Courtesy of The Associated Press

Calling for a “new college compact,” Hillary Rodham Clinton unveiled a $350 billion plan aimed at making college more affordable and reducing the crushing burden of student debt.

At a town hall meeting in New Hampshire, the state with the highest average student debt in the country, Clinton proposed steps to reduce the cost of four-year public schools, make two-year community colleges tuition-free and cut student loan interest rates, according to campaign aides.

She pitched her plan as a public-private partnership, requiring a contribution from the federal government and states, the colleges and universities and students themselves.

“Americans will have to work hard to put themselves through school to out-learn and out-hustle our competitors, just like we always have,” she told voters gathered at a high school in Exeter, New Hampshire.

The college affordability plan, a main plank of her policy platform, is an effort to address a major financial stress for many American families and satisfy a central demand of the Democratic party’s liberal wing.

The proposal centers on a $200 billion federal incentive system aimed at encouraging states to expand their investments in higher education and cut student costs. States that guarantee “no-loan” tuition at four-year public schools and free tuition at community colleges will be eligible to receive federal funds.

But Clinton doesn’t go quite as far as some of her primary challengers. In May, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders released his own plan that would eliminate tuition and fees for public universities. The $70 billion annual proposal would be funded by imposing a tax on transactions by hedge funds, investment houses and other Wall Street firms. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley has proposed giving all students access to debt-free college at in-state universities within five years.

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By: Contributing Author

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