Eliott's Insights: Thank you, Stanley Tate
It was the best investment I ever made.
Back in 1989, I purchased two Florida Pre-Paid College Plans for my daughters, Erica and Bianca. I paid a grand total of $119 a month for the two plans. A pittance. A steal. A deal too good to pass up. A no-brainer.
My daughters made good use of the plans. Erica enjoyed four years of paid tuition at Florida State University and graduated in 2005. Bianca is currently using her plan at the University of Central Florida where she is a senior. Of course, I have had to shell out money for room and board, books, fees and travel back and forth from school. But their college tuition--the single biggest expense for college students--was taken care of by the pre-paid plan. I got a bargain. My daughters received a quality college education at a great price.
But that bargain appears to be coming to an end. I checked the Florida Pre-Paid College Plan website and saw that a new 4-year university plan for a one-year old child costs close to $250 a month. That's almost 4 times what I paid. Remember, I paid $119 for two plans.
Unfortunately, the cost of a college education is increasing beyond the reach of middle class families. And that worries Stanley Tate to no end. Tate, 81, is founder of the Florida Pre-Paid College Plan, the nation's first and most successful college savings plan.
Tate blames Florida politicians who have short-changed the state's colleges and universities. He also blames educators who have lobbied for new medical schools, law schools, football stadiums and other luxuries that, he feels, the state university system simply can't afford.
Recently, the New York Times reported that there are only two solvent state-sponsored college savings plans in the country--Florida's and Colorado's. I asked Tate how he managed to do this and he gave me a quick answer. "I never allowed them to invest in equities," he said of the fund's investment managers. "They only invested in guaranteed fixed rate investments."
If only Stanley Tate had been in charge of our banks and investment houses, our country might not have gotten into the economic mess we're in. At least for Florida's children, Tate has been at the helm of the Pre Paid College Plan since it was created in 1987.
On behalf of Erica and Bianca and the more than one million students who have benefited from the college plan, I say "Thank you Stanley Tate."
If you are a parent in Florida, I urge you to look into the Pre paid college plan by going to their website www.myfloridaprepaid.com or by calling 800-552-GRAD.
It's the best investment you'll ever make, even if it is much more expensive than it used to be.
