What's behind the sky-high cost of a college education — and are there any solutions?

The Biden administration's announcement that up to $20,000 in student loan debt will be canceled for borrowers will bring welcome relief to millions, as long as courts allow. But that relief won't do anything to slow the rapidly rising cost of going to college. In the 1963-1964 academic year, the average annual published cost of in-state tuition and fees was $243 at public four-year institutions, and $1,011 at private four-year institutions, according to National Center for Education Statistics data. That excludes room and board.  If the published cost of college remained in line with inflation, annual tuition and fees would have been $2,076 at four-year public universities and $8,624 at private institutions for the 2020-2021 academic year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics' data in constant dollars, or income adjusted for inflation. But in the 2021-2021 academic year, the average price tag for in-state tuition and fees at a four-year public institution was $9,3