If Gov. Gina M. Raimondo's intent in offering Rhode Islanders two years of tuition-free college was to dramatically change the education landscape in the state, mission accomplished.
The leaders of the state's three higher-educational institutions – the University of Rhode Island, Rhode Island College and the Community College of Rhode Island – are now trying to project the effects that program will have on their respective student bodies. And in each case, the effects are positive.
CCRI may see the least impact, since the program is for full-time students only and 70 percent of its attendees are part time, often working parents. But for those who do attend full time, an increase in attendance is expected.
At URI, many students who went out of state to university, often paying out-of-state tuition at other land-grant institutions, will remain home. That is likely to increase the selectivity for the school, while increasing the chances that those talented young people who may go away to school and not come back, will now remain in state when they graduate and enter the job market here.
Perhaps the biggest gain will come at RIC, with the incentive making the school more affordable to more people. Again, the quality of the student body could improve. But more importantly, the opportunity that an education creates in life improvement would reach a broader swath of the state.
Paying for this program will not be easy. But at a time when investments in the state are happening again, putting money into developing Rhode Island's human capital is a great choice. •