article_snippet: (CNN)The cost of college has rapidly increased over the past 30 years.
article_snippet: Students today face annual costs, between tuition and living, that can easily exceed $10,000 at a community college, $18,000 at a public four-year college (in-state), and $40,000 at a private four-year school.
article_snippet: It's unsurprising that today's students often graduate with large debt loads.
article_snippet: More than two-thirds of students graduate with debt.
article_snippet: And the average amount of debt owed is about $30,000.
article_snippet: This is an unfortunate and costly assumption, as community college students in Louisiana will tell you.
article_snippet: State and federal governments add to the problem, because while State and federal governments spend hundreds of billions on higher education each year, most of it is for time served, in the form of credit hours, rather than learning achieved.
article_snippet: And the faster students can progress, the less the faster students will ultimately pay.
article_snippet: Students pay $1,250 for all-they-can-learn in six months.
article_snippet: How are universities staying afloat financially with such low tuition?
article_snippet: Only recently has the federal government recognized the role the federal government could play in encouraging the move from seat time to learning by redirecting some of the federal government nearly $150 billion-plus financial aid budget.