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“The Promises and Pitfalls of State Free Community College Plans.”

Source:
Harnisch, Thomas L., Lebioda, Kati. "The Promises and Pitfalls of State Free Community College Plans." Policy Matters. American Association of State Colleges and Universities. May 2016. Web. 23 Oct. 2017.

Summary:
This source provides an in depth look into the positives and negatives of free community college plans. The Authors, Thomas L. Harnisch and Kati Lebioda probe the current programs that have been instituted at the time of publication as well as a historical overview of free tuition programs in the United States. They explain in detail the various types of programs and how they function, such as first-dollar or last-dollar, in conjunction with, how the programs are funded and the qualification requirements. Providing positive data and projected results along with the negative data and projected negative outcomes they give the reader an informed guide to free tuition for community colleges. They also present a series of questions for thought along with several alternative methods that could be put in place of or incorporated into a free tuition model.

Quality:
This appears to be a very high-quality source. This unbiased overview of the past, present and future state of free tuition is informative and allows the reader to conclude the article with an accumulation of new data and make an apprized decision on the material presented. The detailed explanations and thorough analysis of the information presented to the reader demonstrates that Mr. Harnisch and Ms. Lebioda, as Director and Assistant Director, of State Relations and Policy Analysis for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, have a considerable grasp on the subject matter.

Issues:
The article has limitations based on the scope of the article. Although it does briefly mention four year state universities, it could be expanded to include them as many; if not all of the same issues will befall both organizations. The article does explore past attempts at free tuition, but the most recent iterations of these programs have not yet been in place long enough to truly establish trends and a depth of data to reach an accurate conclusion.


Key Words and Phrases:
Education
College Tuition
Student Loans
Community Colleges
Financial Aid
Non-Tuition Expenses
First-Dollar
Last-Dollar
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