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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Cooking oil fire damages SOU-owned house, displaces two ... Black Bear Diner on lockdown while police investigate a possible shooting at Best Western ... Ashland police find suspected car thief asleep in stolen vehicle ... Cooking oil fire damages SOU-owned house, displaces two ... Black Bear Diner on lockdown while police investigate a possible shooting at Best Western ... Ashland police find suspected car thief asleep in stolen vehicle ... OUR VIEW Our View: Free tuition could fly if 'fifth-year' plans reined in Comment MailTribune.com Writer Posted May. 22, 2015 at 12:01 AM Posted May. 22, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News A Beaverton lawmaker has a plan to offer recent Oregon high-school graduates a free community college education at what seems to be a reasonable cost to the state. The Legislature should give his plan serious consideration — but only if it simultaneously closes the "fifth-year" loophole that is letting some school districts send high-school students to community college with K-12 money. First, the community college plan: Sen. Mark Hass, D-Beaverton, wants to mirror a program already offered in Tennessee. The program requires high-school graduates to first apply for Pell grants and any other available scholarships, and pay a co-payment of $50 per credit. The state would pay what's left to cover all student's tuition. Living expenses and books would be the student's responsibility. Hass says this "last dollar" approach would keep the cost to the state around $25 million, a relative bargain compared with many other state expenditures. To avoid having the program balloon out of control, it would be available only to students who graduated from an Oregon high school within the previous two years. Students would be required to take solid academic courses leading toward a two-year degree or industry certificate, and to make passing grades to remain in the program. Hass says his approach is affordable because it prompts more students to apply for available federal aid and the state merely makes up the difference. He also notes that the $25 million price tag is not much more than the amount the state estimates is being spent by some school districts to send "fifth-year" seniors to community college early. Using the fifth-year loophole, some high schools are encouraging seniors eligible to graduate to hold off accepting a diploma stay in high school another year. The district then takes the per-student funding amount still provided by the state and pays for community college tuition, allowing the student to earn a year's college credit before graduating high school. This practice is somewhat controversial because it diverts money that could be used to ease crowding in elementary classrooms and other K-12 needs, and the state's biggest districts can't participate for fear of bankrupting the system. If lawmakers vote to end the fifth-year loophole, as Hass wants to do, his community college tuition plan should be enacted as well. MailTribune.com Writer Posted May. 22, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501