The rumors started early last week.
President Obama had been outlining his goals for the last two years of his presidency and had long been interested in improving students' access to college. The president was scheduled to go to Knoxville, Tenn., on Friday. Observers connected the dots and speculated that he would announce a national version of the Volunteer State's program to guarantee high school graduates free tuition to community college.
On Thursday, in a brief Facebook video, Obama did just that, saying he wanted to see "the first two years of community college free for everybody who is willing to work for it." He offered few details.
The pace of questions — both wonky and practical — picked up, and Obama officials began filling in the blanks. Somewhat.
How much would the plan cost? (The White House wouldn't say on Thursday, but later estimated that it could cost up to $60 billion over a decade). Would the president invoke executive privilege to make his plan a reality? (No, Congress and then the states would have to approve it). Surely not all students would be eligible, right? (Only those meeting certain criteria, such as maintaining a 2.5 grade point average, would qualify for the tuition breaks).
Read more at The Los Angeles Times: http://www.latimes.com/local/education/la-me-obama-tuition-20150114-story.html