Dear President,

My name is Aidan L. I am a sixth grade student at a public school in Louisville, KY.  My goal is to attend college when I graduate from high school and graduate from college debt free. 

College is more of a dream than a reality for most people.  The reason is because college has become more expensive over time.  My grandpa was able to attend college and pay for it with a part time job that he had making minimum wage after he left the army.  He only had to attend college for two years to get a great job as an engineer.  He was able to start his adult life debt free.  My mom, on the other hand, attended 4 years of college, from 1988 - 1992.  She is still paying for her student loan debt.  My parents are saving for me to go to college but the price of college is increasing faster than they can save for it.

The problem is that the cost of education is rising faster than the cost of living.  The chances are that you are spending less time in college than you are living. This means that you are spending more money on a shorter amount of time and less money on a longer amount of time. College is becoming more expensive than anything you could buy (ex. a car, a house, food and water etc.). The College Board says the  "moderate college budget for an in state public college for 2015-16 academic year is $24,061."  That would be almost $100,000 for 4 years. This amount doesn't include room and board. By the time I am old enough to go to college this will be even more.

Tuition went up because state governments cut public funding for higher education. Now the people/college students have to pay even more. The more educated people their are the more problem-solvers the United States have.

Thank You for your time,

Aidan L.