Paying low income college tuition a huge waste of money for NJ

In his proposed budget, Gov. Murphy has set aside $50 million for making the first two years tuition-free at four-year colleges for families with incomes under $65,000.

I believe it's the responsibility of either the parent or student to provide for their own education. There are a few things that were brought up on my show that wasn't covered in my blog, such as, why is it so important that we do this?

Many of the people I talked to told stories of how they went to college because they either felt family pressure or didn't know what they wanted to do at that point of their life so they went to college either on student loan or their parents' dime only to figure out later that what they wanted to do or ended up doing had nothing to do with the education they paid for.

The key there is the education that THEY paid for and not we the people of New Jersey. How many students will sign up for college just to buy a few more years before they have to get on with their life? How many parents will be pushing their children to go to college whether they want to or not, only to have them waste their time and our money, which we need to put our own children through college?

Who paid for your college? If you did, I'm sure you put a lot more effort into it than if someone paid for you. Did you end up working in the field of your degree? If so, how many more degrees will be necessary once this plan goes into effect?

If Gov. Murphy really wants to make college affordable in New Jersey, the move would be to go to the state colleges and find out why they are so expensive. There's a lot of fat to be trimmed.

Also, let's not forget the fact that there are a lot of great ways to make a living in New Jersey without a college degree. February was Career and Technical Education month. I've heard from so many electricians, plumbers, auto mechanics, etc., who are spending their 20s making money instead of repaying student loans. They also save money fixing their own cars, houses, etc., just like your dad used to.

When you really look at it, while paying for college for low-income families is a good idea for our Robin Hood governor, it will waste a lot of money for those who are really footing the bill.

That would be we the taxpayers.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Steve Trevelise. Any opinions expressed are Steve's own. Steve Trevelise is on New Jersey 101.5 Monday-Thursday from 7pm-11pm. Follow him on Twitter @realstevetrev.