In a 2018 USA Today article, Dan Caplinger discusses the sharply rising costs of a college education:

Over the past 10 years, the average price for tuition and fees at four-year private colleges and universities has jumped to $34,740 a year, up more than $7,000, according to statistics from the College Board. Those costs have outpaced the rate of inflation by more than 3 percentage points, continuing a troubling trend that has persisted for decades.

There are a lot of factors that contribute to the rising costs of higher education, and several consequences, many of which are unintentional. There is no consensus on either the nature of the problem, nor how to remedy it. Financial experts, educators, and politicians have diagnosed the problem and suggested possible solutions for many years, even as the cost becomes less and less affordable for many families.

American Families for Affordable College (AFAC) is a new advocacy group that hopes to pressure politicians and colleges to find ways to lower the costs of higher education. For this assignment, you have been hired by AFAC as a consultant charged with making a recommendation for how to prioritize their agenda. They know that they cannot fix everything at once, so they have hired you to recommend the best way to begin lowering the cost of college.

You will select one major aspect of college costs provide AFAC with a strong sense of how that debate is discussed. After you have laid out your “they say” focused background section, you will then make a recommendation for how to begin resolving the issue.