Written by
Florida Capital Bureau
Tallahassee, Florida -- Vice President Joe Biden told Florida State University students Monday that making college affordable is not only good for the economy, but a matter of national security.
Biden said FSU "has a very low tuition base," but that tuition and fees have risen 300 percent over the past 20 years, at schools across the nation. With the tough job market and rising college costs, Biden said many people are questioning the value of higher education.
"Folks, it's worth it, it's worth it," Biden said. "Most of all, it's worth it for your country."
Biden said the unemployment rate for college graduates is half what it is for high school graduates. He said college graduates make an average $20,000 more per year than workers with only a high school diploma, and that community college graduates make about $8,000 more than those who don't go to college.
"Seated among you is the next Steve Jobs," Biden told about 350 students at the FSU basketball practice gym. "We are better positioned than any other country in the world to lead in the 21st century."
Biden said he and Obama faced "a perfect storm" when they took office in 2009, with the housing market collapsing and earnings on 401K investment funds tanking, causing many families to struggle with college costs -- or even tell their children they couldn't go. But he said that trend was choking the nation's future ability to compete in global markets.
Biden came to Tallahassee for a "town hall meeting" with students and faculty members at FSU. He also scheduled fund-raising activities for the Obama-Biden re-election campaign while in the capital.
Republicans scoffed at Biden's remarks, saying the administration's economic policies have hurt the middle class in many ways.
"Vice President Biden's taxpayer-funded campaign stop won't change the fact that President Obama has failed to make college more affordable for Florida's students for the past three years of his administration," said Matt Connelly, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee. "College costs are at an all time high and the average Florida student now graduates college with $21,184 in student loan debt."
Bill Cotterell, Florida Capital Bureau