Kaine Discusses Higher Education Affordability In Fredericksburg

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine hosted a roundtable discussion on college affordability today with students and educators at Germanna Community College in Fredericksburg. Throughout the discussion, Kaine heard from students and parents faced with the high cost of higher education and described his efforts in the Senate to help students afford post-secondary degrees.

Kaine kicked off the roundtable by describing his experience with dual enrollment, which helped ease the financial burden on his family by allowing him to graduate college in three years.

"College affordability is an issue our country is grappling with at the national level, state level, community level, and especially at the family level," said Kaine. "We need to get this right so students can afford to get a higher education and have a successful start to their career without being weighed down by student loan debt. There isn't one path that will work for everyone so we need to look at a number of strategies that enable students to succeed in the workforce, and community colleges will play a very important role."

Kaine recently co-sponsored the Supporting College Access and Success Through Dual Enrollment Act to provide states with grants to expand programs that allow high school students to take college-level classes and earn credit that counts toward both high school and college graduation. Kaine praised dual enrollment programs for providing students traditionally underrepresented in higher education with the opportunity to attend college. In Virginia, 28,000 high school students already participate in dual enrollment programs.

Earlier in the day, Senator Kaine toured Fort A.P. Hill and met with members of the Military Affairs Council of the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce.

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