I believe the federal government should fund the education of all Americans for up to four years beyond high school.
Why? The federal government owns three large problem areas – (1) passing, enforcing, and deciphering laws, (2) defending the nation, and (3) regulating the economy of the nation.
It’s this third area into which I want to dive.
We provide for public K-12 because it benefits us as a society to have an educated electorate and an educated workforce. Let’s ignore the fact for a second that our electorate may or may not be served by this system, and focus on the workforce piece.
There are fewer and fewer jobs for which a high school education is enough to be able to contribute to society. And simply changing the high school curriculum isn’t enough.
Without paying for further education beyond high school, we will have failed as a society to build a 21st Century job-ready workforce.
I disagree with many on the Left who immediately go to paying for a college education. Going to a 4-year Tier I research university isn’t the right choice for everyone. But we do need to make sure that we allow future truck drivers, engineers, farmers, doctors, lawyers, and small business owners the opportunity to learn not only how to excel in their trade, but also how to build a business.
Imagine that there is money for a student to not only learn how to be an electrician, but to learn how to run their own company.
There is money for the artist to not only learn how to sculpt, but to learn how to market their work as well.
There is money to allow someone to earn their commercial driving license, establish their own LLC, and a loan program to buy their first truck (ok, now I’m pushing it a bit).
The 21st century needs a populace with a different set of skills and knowledge than the 20th century did. To try to look at what worked in 1984 and compare it to what will work in 2024 ignores how much the world has changed.
And by investing in our children, and funding education beyond high school, we will create a more resilient economy and a more robust society.
For those reasons, I believe you should vote for candidates that support publicly funding students beyond high school to help build a 21st century workforce for America.