Summary: Statement on Proposed College for All Act
April 2021
The MLA strongly supports United States Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal’s proposed College for All Act.
- This bill works toward meaningful reform of higher education in the United States, and proposes the following measures:
- mandating that public institutions achieve a 75% tenure-track workforce
- requiring public institutions to reach this quota of a 75% tenure-track faculty by making it a priority to hire from the existing adjunct, contract, contingent, and non-tenure-track or tenured faculty pool for tenure-track or tenured faculty positions
- requiring that public institutions hire disability services personnel specifically dedicated to serving students with disabilities
- eliminating tuition and fees at public colleges and universities (including specific support for nonprofit colleges serving minority populations) for families making up to $125,000 a year
- making community college free for every person across the United States
- doubling the maximum Pell Grant to $12,990, allowing students to use the money to cover living and nontuition expenses such as books and housing, and expanding grant eligibility to “Dreamers”
- The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated preexisting labor issues and inequities in higher education.
- The MLA recognizes that many of our members are often overworked and underpaid, struggling with precarious job conditions. The College for All Act would benefit MLA members in multiple ways:
- by reversing the current manufactured labor crisis and adjunctification
- by relieving the economic burden of college for many members’ students and children
- by preventing further student debt crises for future generations
- You can read more about the proposed legislation on Senator Sanders’s website.
- The MLA urges organizations of higher education (including faculty unions) to endorse and support this bill.