Elizabeth Warren is one of 10 presidential candidates taking part in a Democratic debate Tuesday, July 30, at 8 p.m. ET, on CNN. Ten others will debate on Wednesday evening. She is a US senator from Massachusetts. The opinions expressed in this commentary are her own; view more opinion at CNN.
(CNN) When I was 12, my daddy had a heart attack, and we thought he was going to die. He wasn't able to work for a long time. We lost our family station wagon and were an inch away from losing our home.
One day I walked into my parents' bedroom and there on the bed was the dress -- the one that only comes out for weddings, funerals and graduations. My mom was still in her slip as she paced around the room and repeatedly said, "We will not lose this house." She was 50 and had never worked outside the home. But she dried her tears, pulled on that dress, stepped into her high heels and walked to the Sears, where she got a minimum-wage job answering phones. That job saved our family.
I grew up in Oklahoma with three older brothers who all went off and joined the military. Growing up, I knew I wanted to be a public school teacher. But for that you needed a college degree -- and to get a college degree you needed money my family didn't have. Still, I figured it out. I got a scholarship and headed off to George Washington University.
Like a lot of Americans, my story isn't exactly a straight line. I dropped out of college at 19 after the first boy I ever loved asked me to marry him, and I got a job answering phones. Even though I thought my dream of teaching was over, I had a good job and a good life.
Then, I heard about the University of Houston. It was a public four-year college just 40 minutes away and tuition was just $50 a semester -- something I could afford on a part-time waitressing salary. I got my degree and went on to become a teacher for students with speech and learning disabilities. I got to live my dream.
Swolbrobrainz on July 29th, 2019 at 13:59 UTC »
A large reason I went into the military after high school was because 1) I knew I wasn’t ready for college, 2) because I couldn’t afford it and I wanted the GI bill so I when I was ready for college, I wouldn’t have to worry about financing it. I’m almost graduated from college using that GI Bill, but let me tell ya, that GI Bill doesn’t cut it. It’s 1300 a month in my location of the state of New York. With a car bill, car insurance, phone bill, rent, groceries, gas, etc. it’s not enough to get by. Even with a part-time job, I barely get by, so I’ve had to take out student loans. This is the situation many student-veterans are in. Going to school full-time as an independent adult is nearly impossible without taking out student loans—I don’t know how someone who doesn’t have the privilege of the GI Bill would be able to do it! Something needs to change.
Edit** spelling.
Edit** wow thanks for the silver! That’s my first reddit award.
Edit**
Many of you commenting are missing the point of this comment. The point of this comment is to highlight how much more difficult it must be for those individuals who are also full-time independent students who do not have the GI Bill educational benefits. By that, I mean they are living on their own and they don’t have family helping them financially. Without the GI Bill, I could not be a full-time student, so I am suggesting it might be entirely impossible to be a full-time independent student without accumulating massive amounts of debt.
Footwarrior on July 29th, 2019 at 12:54 UTC »
Conservatives in my state cut funding of higher education and said they would give money directly to students instead. That would let the free market decide which colleges and universities deserved the money. Tuition went up at state universities and colleges to make up for the loss in state funds but the promised increases in student grants never happened.
PressurePass on July 29th, 2019 at 12:51 UTC »
I couldn't even go to college on an engineering salary....I still needed loans.