As 24th District representative, Salud Carbajal will focus on education

Students today face tremendous college costs their parents could not have imagined. Tuition and fees at California’s public universities have tripled since 1992. Having just moved twins into college, this fact hits home for our family. In addition, students are far less likely to graduate in four years than they were a generation ago. Tacking on extra years because of a lack of preparation or impacted classes adds even more to the tab.

A college degree has replaced a high school diploma in many fields as the prerequisite in most career paths. We need to elect representatives like Salud Carbajal, who will work to make college more accessible and more affordable by lowering interest rates on government-backed loans; allowing students to refinance loans (as on mortgages and car loans); and by expanding eligibility for financial aid and Pell Grants.

Last year, Republicans on the Appropriations Committee in Congress voted to cut $2.5 billion from our education funding, including funding for early education. This is not the time to make education any less available to students of any age.

Salud Carbajal will work to make college more accessible and more affordable for everyone as our next congressional representative in the 24th District.

This story was originally published October 19, 2016 at 10:07 PM with the headline "As 24th District representative, Salud Carbajal will focus on education."