Earlier this year, President Barack Obama proposed to make the first two years of community college free during his State of the Union address and now he’s really owning up to that promise. After exploring the wilderness with Bear Grylls and possibly prepping Vice President Joe Biden for a 2016 presidential run, he has teamed up with Biden’s wife, Jill, to push the plan through.
Jill Biden, who teaches English at community college, will lead the project with heavy support from the president. Time reports that they visited Macomb County Community College in Warren, Michigan on Wednesday to announce a self-governing College Promise Advisory Board that will highlight programs already providing free education at that level.
According to Detroit Free Press, the board will make strong efforts to recruit more states and communities to follow suit—like enlisting celebrities in a public awareness campaign. With a Republican-controlled Congress not biting (the plan is currently stalled), domestic policy adviser Cecilia Munoz said the advisory board will try to build momentum “so that Congress will do what the people are asking for.” She concedes that in the past six months, Oregon and Minnesota have started statewide programs, and additional local efforts are taking place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Dayton, Ohio; and Palatine, Illinois.
Obama also announced $175 million in Department of Labor grants that will create 34,000 apprenticeships through the country for workers in health care, information technology, advanced manufacturing, and more.
