The 21st century can be the next great American century if we make the necessary investments in education. We will prepare our generation for success in college and the workforce, and ensure that Americans lead the world once again in creativity and achievement.

Most people will agree that their kids deserve to go to college should they choose to. Even more will agree that it should be reasonably affordable because after all, education should not be a luxury. Unfortunately, for far too long, this has not been the case.

The result has often been one of two scenarios. On the one hand, some students altogether just decide not to go to college because it is too expensive. On the other hand, those that choose to go end up with a mountain of debt by the time they finish their undergraduate career. This mountain of debt will continue to grow for those who pursue a graduate degree which in today’s economy is essential. Students would then begin their careers with debt that may take decades to pay off. For those that didn’t even choose to go to college, they are often left dreaming about a different kind of life.

President Obama made it a major priority of his campaign promising that students would have expanded access to pell grants and other forms of financial aid. During his 2010 State of the Union address he proclaimed that “in the United States of America, no one should go broke because they chose to go to college.” Despite the fact that the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act in September of 2009, it was stalled in the U.S. Senate until very recently. Better known as SAFRA, this bill was originally projected to save the federal government roughly $87 billion over the next decade by ending the practice of subsidizing private student loans. It was not until SAFRA was attached to a budget reconciliation bill making changes to health care reform that it had a shot at becoming law.

In that time from September until the bill’s passage in March, a funny thing happened. The Congressional Budget Office, who is charged with assessing the impact of legislation on the government’s budget, found that it would no longer save $87 billion; instead it would be closer to $68 billion. The reason? Thousands of Americans decided to go either enroll in college for the first time or go back to college in hopes that it would be more affordable and as a result, it would save slightly more.

When President Obama signed the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act into law, those hopes became a reality. Along with providing billions in funding to the often forgotten community colleges around the country, students who take out loans after 2014 may have their loans forgiven should they pay them in a timely manner after 20 years. Moreover, for those taking loans after 2014, they will be able to cap the amount they must spend on loan repayment each month at 10% of their discretionary income, a decrease from 15%.

Here at UCF, we persistently raised awareness about the impact this legislation would have on students around the country and in our very own university. We are very grateful that Senator Bill Nelson, Congresswoman Suzanne Kosmas and Congressman Alan Grayson decided to support this legislation and help take part in securing the future of America’s young men and women who seek higher education. In the words of President Obama, this is change we can believe in.