Introduction

Ed Nacional

As Rick Perry becomes the candidate to beat in the Republican presidential field, his public policy ideas are being examined, including his call for substantially reducing the costs of higher education. He asked Texas's top colleges to come up with a program that costs no more than $10,000 for four years. Community colleges and online instruction would be part of the low-cost programs, which Mr. Perry said could eventually account for at least 10 percent of degrees conferred. His critics say his plan is a politician's ploy of offering something for nothing.

But the spiraling cost of higher education is an issue that resonates nationally. How feasible is the idea of creating precise targets for a low-cost college education?