Mike Bloomberg is best choice

To the editor:

I am lucky. I just spent four years studying at my top school, the College of Mount Saint Vincent, and am ready to graduate in May. I have incredible parents who sacrificed to ensure I received a quality education my entire life, and those sacrifices have opened up a world of possibilities.

Yet, I know so many other students are not nearly as fortunate because they are being failed by our country’s higher education system.

Growing up, I never knew where on the social class pyramid my family fell. My mom is a preschool teacher, and my dad is a construction worker. We lived in a two-bedroom apartment outside Boston until we bought our house when I was 12.

I attended Catholic school, played volleyball and lacrosse, and went on family vacations. But with my mom still paying student loans from getting her master’s degree and needing to pay our mortgage, my parents had to make sacrifices to pay for my education. My dad, who didn’t graduate high school, always said they were worth it, though.

Throughout my college years, I’ve seen a lot of my peers stop going to school because the price tag was just too high. The lucky ones were able to continue at community colleges. Others dropped out all together. Even worse, some of them are paying back loans for a degree they never earned.

This crisis cannot continue. We need a president who understands the current economic realities of attending college, and wants to turn this terrible situation around.

Mike Bloomberg is the only candidate with a plan that will reform the student loan process, make a four-year education affordable for middle class families, and perhaps most importantly expand workforce development programs for people who want to take a different path to a career.

If Mike’s elected, he’ll reduce the cap on federal undergraduate student loan payments, which could be game changing for many of my peers. He’ll double the maximum size of Pell Grants, which unlike a loan, don’t need to be paid back.

I just qualified for a Pell Grant, which made a significant difference in the tuition bill I received from The Mount. And Mike’s plan to make two-year public college tuition free for all will open doors to everyone.

I like Mike because, like me, he grew up in a hardworking, middle class Boston family, and realized the “American Dream.” And, because Mike knows how hard it is to climb the ladder and wants to leave a real legacy behind, he’ll make it easier for others to realize their own American Dream too.

Mike’s no stranger to higher education. Throughout his career, he has invested more than any other American in post-secondary education. As president, he’ll be able to make an even greater impact through much-needed policy changes.

And I hope that people I know will take advantage of his new policy that will encourage programs to re-enroll adults who have some college experience, but no degree, so they can find better jobs.

Mike’s plan for higher education is the only one that effectively addresses both the cost of attending school and improving the quality of education students like me receive. Like Mike said, “Every child deserves an equal opportunity to get a high-quality education, and I know we can deliver it.”

Since Mike delivers on his promises, I know we can count on him to bring this plan to life.

After graduation, I want to become a journalist and tell stories about everyday Americans. I know that, in a Bloomberg administration, there will be far fewer stories of students dropping out of school and having to work jobs with no room for growth.

That’s why I encourage all college students, or anyone who was once a college student, to support Mike and his ground-breaking campaign.

Christina Rasmussen

The author is a communications major at the College of Mount Saint Vincent, and is a former intern at The Riverdale Press. She is a volunteer for the Bloomberg presidential campaign.

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