Elizabeth Warren

College was affordable. And part-time jobs on campuses were held by students who, thanks to a livable minimum wage, could earn enough to work their way through college.

I paid for part of my college education through part-time jobs. My family was not wealthy, but tuition was not so astronomical that only the rich could afford it. So my family sacrificed to send the kids to college, and we worked for our room and board and money.

Today, the government makes the students pay too much for tuition. Books are out-of-this-world expensive, and students have to borrow. Back when I was in school, students borrowed maybe some of the money for tuition and books, but not all of it, and it was not nearly as expensive as it is today. The government could be repaid the money it spends on education in the form of increased taxes on the income of students who do well and are paid well in their working lives.

Taking the money in the form of interest on student loans discourages people from getting an education. It influences the career choices. If you want to know why the best and brightest do not become teachers nowadays, think student loans. You can only afford to go to the best schools in the country if you have either a very good scholarship or you rack up the student loans. And it is very difficult to repay thousands and thousands of dollars in student loans plus interest on a beginning teacher's salary. Teaching just does not pay as well as some other fields and entails constantly taking courses and attaining additional degress. That principle applies to other public service professions.

When we shortchange students, we shortchange ourselves. Business needs and wants educated workers. Businesses should pay higher taxes so that workers can be educated.