College for Everyone

While Senator Edwards won't make it to the White House until 2009, the campaign so far has emphasized steps that we can take now to make things better, even in the absence of the presidency. Here's a terrific example:

Based on a pilot program at Greene Central High School, which serves a rural area in Eastern North Carolina, Edwards said his effort would make college opportunities more broadly available.

Starting in 2005, Edwards initiated a privately-funded "College for Everyone" program that cover the cost of tuition, fees and books at a public college for one year. In exchange, students must work at least 10 hours a week in college, take college preparatory courses in high school and stay out of trouble.

The program has increased the rate of kids from Greene Central High going to college from 54 percent to 74 percent, according to the Edwards campaign.

College is the great equalizer in American society, so we're lucky to have Senator Edwards speaking out with a real plan to improve access to higher education. There's nothing worse than when high schoolers who wants to keep learning, keep improving and keep increasing their earning potential, and they just can't afford to do it. Hopefully we'll have a plan soon that'll do for the country what Senator Edwards' College for Everyone has done for Greene, North Carolina.