When I started Yale in 1977, my tuition was $7500. When I graduated four years later, it had risen to $11,500. My father finished the 8th grade and my mother finished the 9th grade. I was not eligible for financial aid but my dad toke out one student loan during my college years. He paid the loan off completely within 5 years of my graduation.
When my daughter started Yale in 2006, the tuition was $42,000. When she graduated in 2010, it had risen to $50,000. The tuition, room and board fees do not include books, transportation, personal hygiene supplies, beer, or pizza money. When I calculated how much it cost to put her through Yale, I realized what a huge investment this Ivy League education had been. I looked at our retirement savings and realized that the financial sacrifices that my husband and I have made may never be recouped in our lifetime.
We made the investment in higher education when our oldest turned 4 years old. I wish I could tell you that we used the public schools in our neighborhood but that would not be the truth. When we moved into our home 20 years ago, I told my husband that we would never be able to use the local school system. If we had purchased a home in a different neighborhood, we may have been able to use the public schools until 8th grade. My husband and I only agreed on purchasing this one house. We made the choice to use private schools the day we signed the purchase agreement.
I know that we have been blessed to be able to make a choice when so many parents can not.
Without a college education, a child's future is limited.
How will my grandchildren be able to afford the dream of sending their children to college?
DAYM
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