Highway to free college.

Though many have written about Hillary Clinton’s free-college plan, what’s often left out of the mix is her idea to have the federal and state governments work together on it.

Until now, financial aid has moved from the federal government directly to students. But Mrs. Clinton has proposed sending federal money to the states to subsidize tuition for low- and middle-income students at public colleges. States would have to kick in some of their own money as well and agree to hold down tuition increases. The money funneled through the states would be subject to federal regulatory requirements, something the states have long dodged.

The summary of Mrs. Clinton’s free-college plan on her website offers few details on how such a partnership might work, but there is precedent for a vast federal-state project: the nation’s interstate highway system. Read The Chronicle‘s Karin Fischeron what higher ed can learn from the ambitious project to build a federal highway system.