Here are the top 100 most expensive colleges by tuition for the 2010-2011 school year. This year 43 colleges now charge over $40,000/year for tuition, compared to just 11 last year.

Notes:
Some colleges like Bates College, Colby College, Middlebury College, and Union College have a comprehensive fee (tuition + room/board). Their tuition numbers were taken by taking their total comprehensive fee and subtracting by the amount of rebate the college gives to students who choose to live off campus.

Data compiled by CampusGrotto.com. These numbers were taken directly from the college's website in October of 2010.

Over the last five years, surveys have shown that an increasing number of college students believe that marijuana should be legalized. Students were surveyed in 2004 and 2009 with results showing an increase from 37.2% to 45.6% for those in favor of marijuana legalization.

One of the more active student groups supporting legalization is Students for Sensible Drug Policy. Students for Sensible Drug Policy is “an international grassroots network of students who are concerned about the impact drug abuse has on our communities, but who also know that the War on Drugs is failing our generation and our society”.

Students for Sensible Drug Policy have joined in a movement across college campuses in support of Proposition 19, California's legalization measure to be voted on in November. The aim of the challenge is to collect signatures in support of the legalization of marijuana which will later be sent to the President to let him know how popular the issue is among students. More than 1,000 college chapters are participating.

California voters will decide in November whether to legalize marijuana, and South Dakota and Arizona will be voting on the use of medical marijuana, which is already permitted in 13 other states (including California). (Regardless of the States, the Federal Government still considers the plant to be illegal).

The “War on Drugs”

The United States has more people in jail per capita than any other nation in the world, in large part because of the War on Drugs. The United States has 5 percent of the world's population, but nearly a quarter of the prisoners in the world. There are now about 480,000 drug offenders in jails and prisons, and about 50 percent of the federal prison population consists of drug offenders.

Since the founding of the DEA in 1973, 15 million Americans have been arrested for marijuana. Police prosecuted 858,408 persons for marijuana violations in 2009, according to the FBI’s annual Uniform Crime Report. The arrest total is the second highest ever reported by the FBI. In 2007, the FBI reported 872,721 marijuana prosecutions in the United States, the highest total on record.

Research by Harvard economist Jeffery Miron shows that the legalization of marijuana would save approximately $13.7 billion per year in government expenditure on enforcement of prohibition and would yield $6.4 Billion per year in tax revenue.

As more and more students are turning to community colleges to fulfill their higher education goals, students are seeing that learning in a smaller campus atmosphere they can get prompt feedback and better access to instructors.

Students are enrolling in community colleges for a number of reasons: the lower cost, the close location to home, and those recently unemployed are looking to gain new skills for the job market.

Nearly half of all American students begin their college careers at two-year institutions. There are about 1,200 community colleges nationwide educating approximately 12 million students.

Affordable Education

Going to a community college is obviously a cheaper option. Average tuition and fees for 2-year schools in 2009-2010 was $2,544, while the average cost at a 4-year public school was $7,020.

Full-time students at public two-year colleges receive an average of $3,000 in grant aid. This aid covers average tuition and fees and provides about $500 toward living expenses. (Source: College Board 2009 Trends in College Pricing)

Top 25 Community Colleges

The ranking (compiled by Washington Monthly) is based on multiple categories, including: learning environment, academic challenge, graduation rate, and student-faculty interaction.

1. Saint Paul College (MN)
2. Hesston College (KS)
3. Carolinas College of Health Sciences (NC)
4. Mayland Community College (NC)
5. Itasca Community College (MN)
6. Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College
7. Leech Lake Tribal College (MN)
8. Alexandria Technical College (MN)
9. Southwestern Community College (NC)
10. Chippewa Valley Technical College (WI)
11. Washington County Community College District (ME)
12. Georgia Military College
13. Umpqua Community College (OR)
14. Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College
15. Western Wyoming Community College
16. New Mexico State University - Grants
17. Tacoma Community College (WA)
18. Hazard Community and Technical College (KY)
19. Skagit Valley College (WA)
20. Alabama Southern Community College
21. Rowan-Cabarrus Community College (NC)
22. North Country Community College (NY)
23. North Central Missouri College
24. Hawaii Community College
25. Halifax Community College (NC)

For more see: Washington Monthly

As if getting into college (and paying for it) wasn’t hard enough, the state of Illinois wants citizens to risk their hard earned dollars in a lottery for college tuition. The new "Cash 4 College" game is a $2 scratch-off ticket that offers full college tuition payments for five top winners. Winners will get to choose from a number of colleges nationwide.

This lottery is basically a tax to raise money for education (which is supposedly where most profits from state-run lotteries go). Lotteries are considered a regressive tax, meaning the tax imposes a greater burden on the poor than on the rich. Poor and middle-class families are having a hard enough time as it is paying for college, and this “Cash 4 College” game will more than likely be marketed to them. Unfortunately, less fortunate high school grads may start seeing these scratch tickets in their graduation cards (instead of cash) from relatives as their one big shot to pay for school.

Speaking of college and lotteries…

Stoughton Hall was funded by a Lottery

In 1774, Harvard College, who was running a little short on cash, received special permission to run a lottery to gather funds to erect Stoughton Hall. Harvard reintroduced this lottery again in 1794, prolonging the drawing for 10 years. After 10 years the lottery produced a net of $18,400 (over $250,000 in today’s dollars). For some reason Harvard purchased $2000 in tickets for itself. The winning ticket was announced as ticket No. 18,547, which just so happened to be one of the tickets Harvard had purchased.

Lotteries also helped establish many other prominent colleges, including Yale, Dartmouth, Williams, Princeton, Penn, and Columbia University.

During the 2008-2009 school year there were a total of 662,079 Master's Degrees handed out, according to a recent report released in August. Of those degrees received, over 60% were earned by women.

Most Popular Master's Degrees for Men

Total number of Master’s Degrees earned by Men (2008-2009): 263,538

During the 2008-2009 school year there were a total of 1,601,367 Bachelor's Degrees handed out, according to a recent report released in August. Of those degrees received, nearly 60% were earned by women.

The federal government (Dept. of Education) requires all postsecondary institutions who receive federal aid (Pell Grants, Stafford Loans, etc.) to complete the survey every year. It is this survey data that the public has access to when researching colleges.

Most Popular Bachelor's Degrees for Men

Total number of Bachelor’s Degrees earned by Men (2008-2009): 685,381