Former President Clinton connected with college students Wednesday concerning issues such as the cost of college and the development of his program to involve youth in public service.
Clinton held a conference call with about 50 journalists from college newspapers, including The Daily Reveille, in promotion of his Clinton Global Initiative University, which holds annual meetings for students to discuss solutions to global issues.
Annual CGIU meetings began three years ago at Tulane University, and the 2010 summit starts Friday at the University of Miami. Clinton said the organization’s development came from his passion for public service.
“As a private citizen, you try to do the public good,” Clinton said.
The conversation shifted to the rising cost of higher education.
“One thing that no one disputes is we still have the best system of higher education in the world,” Clinton said. “It’s the crown jewel of the American society and American economy, but we are rapidly pricing it out of reach of our own citizens and those who come to our shores to attend college.”
It’s imperative to figure out why costs have spiked in the last decade, Clinton said.
“When I took office, average public university tuition was about 7 percent of the average family income, and today it’s more than 13 percent,” Clinton said. “Is it twice as good? If not, why did it go up so much?”
Options to keep costs down, like offering more courses online or at more affordable community colleges, must also be explored, Clinton said.
Clinton also discussed the recently passed health care reform bill. Clinton, who tried to tackle health care during his presidency, said two major factors contributed to President Obama’s success where Clinton failed.
The first is the issue of health care is much worse now than during his time in office. The second, which Clinton said was more important to the bill’s success, is that Obama has a Congress much more receptive to reform.
Clinton said he is proud of his work as president, and it will be difficult to match that progress out of office.
“I’ll have to live a long time to do as much good as a private citizen as I did as president,” he said.
But Clinton said his commitment to public service is equally as rewarding as his presidency, which is in line with his personal philosophy.
“Never waste a day of your life wishing you could do something you can’t do anymore,” he said.
Contact Ryan Buxton at [email protected]