Lower College Costs with 100% Free Tuition Credits

This billionaire is quietly giving away free college to 800,000 people through the organization Modern States Education Alliance..   The program offer free online courses to prepare students for the CLEP (College Level Examination Program) exams that give college credit.  These credits area accepted at many colleges and universities when passing the test.  See the CLEP website for a list of schools and accepted credits.  There is no cost to the passing student since the organization reimburses the $100 test fee for a passing grade.

This is a great way to get a college education at a  reduced cost by getting some credits through CLEP.  It can even be done while working a job.

For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor higher education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Cars Broken Into at College

My daughter uses one of our cars at college.  She parks in a secure garage by her apartment.  Unfortunately, due to freezing the temperatures, the gate at the entrance has been kept open. Yesterday, she received an email that some cars were broken into the previous night.   The perpetrators smashed the passenger side windows to get into the car.

She was worried and  called me as she was going to inspect her car.  The car is fully insured against vandalism, but it's still takes time and effort to work with insurance companies and get the car repaired.  Maybe a week of losing use of the car and she needed for a trip home soon.

Fortunately, her car was not damaged, probably because she does not leave anything of value in view on the seats.  Just bags from take out food runs.   Also, the vehicle is 22 years old and most break ins were on newer vehicles.

She was lucky.  Some of the other residents at the apartment were not.  Unfortunately, the video surveillance cameras did not get good pictures of the perpretators.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor anti theft advice advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

The Dip Kept Dipping - Arrgh!

I decided to buy today's stock market dip by purchasing several individual stocks, which what I did when I was younger.  Buying individual stocks on a dip is a hard habit to break.   I picked up some good buys, but the dip kept dipping to the close and my purchases ended the day down.  Fortunately, I don't have much invested in the buys today since I plan to put most funds in a S&P Index fund as the dip continues, which I expect it will.   

Looking back, a good time to buy is when the market dips. I'm going to take this opportunity to invest my kids' college accounts in the S&P Index fund tomorrow.  These are long term accounts and won't matter much if the dip keeps dipping.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investment nor college advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

University Snow Closings - Times have Changed

My alma mater just posted on LinkedIn that classes will be held at the discretion of the instructor due to 14 inches of snow.  Back in my day, classes were not cancelled for winter weather.   In February 1977, I walked to an 8AM class in waist deep snow. The chemistry professor wondered out loud why there were so few students.  LOL

For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Rising Cost of a College Education

I found this 2019 article on college costs: You Won’t Believe How Much College Costs Have Jumped in the Past 50 Years

The article states costs have gone up 31X from 1969 to 2019, or a little over 7% average per year for 50 years.   Based on the numbers shared, I assume costs shown are only for yearly tuition/fees and do not include room and board. The article includes a table of average college costs through 2019.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday  for a new segment.

This is not financial nor education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Turbocharge 529 Plan Contributions

Here's a hack I found that can increase your tax deductible contributions to a state supported 529 plan.  

In my state, contributions to the state 529 plan are deductible on a state tax return.  We started contributing the maximum to my daughter's account the year she arrived.  Unfortunately, this amount, even if contributed every year, would not cover her college expenses.    However, I realized that 529 plans could be opened for us, the parents, which enabled us to triple our tax deductible contributions, which tripled the amount of tax exempt earnings. 

In the future, we could transfer the funds to our daughter's account, avoiding tax consequence, if we kept the amount below the annual gift exemption.   Thus, each parent can transfer up to the maximum gift tax exemption ($19,000 in 2025) each year per child.

If there is money after college, the beneficiary can use up to $35,000 to contribute to a Roth IRA account.

Terrific benefits of contributing a 529 College savings plan.  Use the hack above to contribute, deduct, and earn even more than just contributing to the child's account.

For more on Ideas You Can Use , check back every Tuesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, tax, saving, 529 plan advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Like Father, Like Daughter - DIY Skills

I a big DIY and Fixit Dad.  It's part of my DNA as an engineer.   Before my daughter was in kindergarten, I used to have her help me assemble or repair things.   I also advised, but did not do, some of her physics and engineering projects.

My daughter is in college now, majoring in Biochemistry and Music Performance.   This year she is living off campus.  On move-in day, one of her roommates had the tension rod on her shower caddy come apart.  Her dad tried to fix it but could not. My daughter took over and repaired it.   He asked how did she know how do it.  Her reply, "My dad is an engineer and I watched him do things."   Made me proud.

I'm also including her in the financial aspects of paying for college education.  Ranging from how we invested to make it debt free to the paying for the cost each semester.  Hopefully, that rubs off on her in the future for financial skills.

Recently, I started showing her the DIY car maintenance that I do, since we will be lending her a car for this year.

For more on  Crossing Generations check back every Thursday  for a new segment.

This is not financial or parenting advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Do What You Love and The Money Will Come...

IMHO, the worst advice ever. 

I prefer the Japanese Ikigai to blend:   What you love; What you are good at; What the world needs; and What you can be paid for.

For more on  Reflections and Musings, check back every Saturday  for a new segment.

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Checking College Bills

Over the summer, our daughter received a bill for fall semester in college. She assumed the bill was correct.  As with all bills, I reviewed the bill in detail.   I found two incorrect charges.

1. The school automatically billed us for Health Insurance, despite us having our own health insurance and deleting it last year.  The billing office explained that the college automatically bills for health insurance and expects the student to remove it if not needed.
   
   
2. There was a small surcharge for a room where students are allowed to remain during breaks.  My daughter did not request this service.  Her roommate did, but wasn't charged.

My coaching lesson for my daughter is to check all bills, especially big ones, in detail.  Don't assume the billing organization did it correctly.

For more on Strategies and Plans check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2024 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

What's Next?

I started this blog in 2006, when I was 48, as a way to track our progress towards retirement.   I retired in 2007 at 49.   Unfortunately, the Great Recession happened in 08/09, which tested our capability for me to remain in retirement.   As it turned out, the 50% haircut we took in retirement funds didn't cause us to reverse our retirement plans.  As they say, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.    

Our retirement funds eventually recovered and non retirement investments covered our living expenses enabling our retirement funds to grow further.   Along the way, we both received a share of inheritances from our parents for which we are stewards and continuing to have them grow.  At age 64, I started taking Social Security which provides a monthly payment and we learned the value of a pension, which neither of us have.

I'd like to say that we've figured out the path to financial success that our children can follow.  Unfortunately, the path we took may not be around any longer to work for them.  Our commitment to our children is to get through undergraduate college debt free.   We have accomplished that by contributing the maximum to a 529 plan from the year we adopted both of them. In fact, we may be able to cover part of their graduate degrees with our contribution.

The other big change is transitioning from being a super saver to a spender.  I have spent most of life minimizing costs, clipping coupons and getting the best deals possible.  I've been extremely frugal to prepare for retirement. Barring any unexpected medical costs, I believe we have sufficient funds to cover until our 90s.  However, as Yogi Berra once said, it's difficult to make predictions, especially about the future.   

For more on  Ideas You Can Use , check back every Tuesday for a new segment.

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2024 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Low Awareness of 529 College Savings Plan

According to this article, over two thirds of Americans do not know what 529 college savings plans are, despite the fact that the average student loan debt is $27,000 for college graduates.   Earnings in 529 plans are exempt from income tax if the earnings are used for higher education.  In addition, some 529 plan contributions can be deducted on state income tax returns.

The main downside of 529 plans is the limited use of funds for education.  If a child chooses not to attend college or receives a full scholarship, earnings withdrawals will be subject to a income tax and a 10% penalty.  An alternative is to transfer the funds to another beneficiary, such as a sibling.

Based on my experience, even people that know about 529 plans often choose not to use them.  Sometimes it's due to lack of funds, sometimes it's avoidance of additional financial complexity, and sometimes it's just lack of interest.  Generally, 529 plans appeal to people that have higher than normal interest in financial matters.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every  Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2013 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Community College Graduates Salaries Higher than Bachelor Degrees

 Community college graduates out-earn bachelor's degree holders reports that 30% of Americans with an associate's make more than those with a bachelor's degree.  Associates degrees at community colleges have the added benefit of costing less both on an annual basis and in total.  However, the article does point out that while people with bachelor's degree make an average of $500,000 more over a lifetime than those with with an associate's degree.

Give numbers of bachelor's degree graduates with high student debt and no/low paying jobs, getting an associate's degree first, working and then getting a bachelor's degree may be a prudent financial choice.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial or education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2013 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

50% of College Grads Umemployed or Underemployed

Half of recent college graduates are unemployed or underemployed according to this AP article .  The reasons are: type of degree,  degree inflation, and the economy.   

The article reports that while those with science, health fields and teaching degrees do better, people with degrees in arts and humanities have more difficulty finding a job in their field.   The increase in the number of  people with a college degree has also made a college education less valuable when looking for a job.   Finally, the high unemployment in the current economy makes fewer jobs available to college graduates.

That's quite a different experience than my mom and dad's generation, where a college degree created excellent career opportunities with top companies.  Even for my generation, people were still able to get much better jobs after graduating from college. 

Given the high cost of college, it will be important for our daughter to choose an appropriate major that will lead to a good job.   Fortunately, we sill have 10 more years before our daughter has to make that decision.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.
This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2013 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Colleges with Free Tuition

5 Colleges You Can Go to for Free  shares 20 colleges that offer free tuition or reduced tuition for its students.   Many of the colleges have very limited majors or are military academies.  Also, often room and board or other fees are not covered.   However, in all cases, the cost of college is significantly reduced and may eliminate the need for student loans.

Many of these free colleges may not be an option for our daughter since she does not meet the residency requirement or have interest in a military career.  The only possibility may be the music schools since our daughter has shown interest and demonstrated above average skills in this area.

However, the college decision is still at least 9 years away and the cost landscape may be much different by then.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial or education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2013 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

College 529 Plan - 2012 Contribution Made

Earlier this month, we made our annual contribution to our daughter's college 529 plan.  This plan will be one part of how we will pay for our daughter's education.   Since the contribution is a deduction on our 2012 state tax return, this was one of our final tax planning actions for this year.  

 At this time, about 1/3 is invested in various equity mutual funds; 2/3 was converted to cash during the debt ceiling cliff of 2011.  100%  of the 2012 contribution was invested in a mutual fund.   For 2013, I plan to increase the equity allocation to 50-60%.

Currently, we saved enough for one year of college.   At the current rate of saving, we'll probably have about 2 years of costs saved by the time our daughter is 18.  To get much higher than that will require a significant advance in the stock market, which doesn't look likely for now.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday  for a new segment.


This is not financial or college saving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2012 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Choosing the Harder Right for a College Major

Back when we were in our teens, my spouse and I chose college majors that would lead to a good paying job.  My spouse would have enjoyed majoring in Journalism, but chose Food Science instead, even though it was a much tougher curriculum.   I chose Engineering because I knew the degree would lead to a well paying job.   Despite graduating in poor job markets in the 80s, both of us were able to get jobs right away.  Also, we both were able to pay off our student loans in the 10 year payback period.

We are trying to instill these same perspectives in our eight year old daughter. A college education should be part of her wealth building plan. Given the current high expense, college is the opportunity to get an education that leads to a higher paying job, not to just get a general education. 

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday  for a new segment.

This is not financial or education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2012 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Student Loans Burdening Parents

When I attended college, student loans were of great help. I took out student loans, not because my parents couldn't pay, but to relieve the financial burden for my parents.  If I recall correctly, which is not guaranteed :-),  I took out the maximum Federal guaranteed student loan each semester in my sophomore through senior years.   I signed for the loan myself; my parents didn't need to co-sign.  For reference, each semester's loan was about 5% of my starting salary as an engineer and my total loan was about 40% of my starting salary.  Even at these amounts, I felt the burden of the debt for 10 years.

I've already read about how students are graduating with loans that two to three times their starting salary.  In addition, student loans may now be more of a burden than assistance to parents according to the article, Child's Education, but Parents' Crushing Loans which provides details on the plight of two students' parents.  Essentially, the parents co-signed their child's loans.  Despite their own poor financial situation, the parents are now responsible for the loans since their child missed payments.  Sometimes this results in reduction of tax refunds or Social Security benefits to cover loan payments.

Some lessons for me:  1) Don't co-sign a child's loan; 2) Save for college.   Some lessons for my daughter:  1) Borrow less than 30% of her expected starting salary; 2) Major in a field with a high starting salary.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial or education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2012 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Seniors Still Paying on Student Loans

 Over 60 and still paying student loans reports that $36 billion, or 4.2%, of student loans are owed by people 60 and older.  Another 11.3% of the student loan debt is owed by people 50-59.  The article does not share the exact causes of  people still having student loans at these ages.  The potential reasons include not paying enough on loans, going back to school later, or co-signing a child's or grandchild's student loan.

When I graduated from college over thirty years ago, loans were a great way to help pay for a college eduction.  I doubt many seniors were paying off student debt.  For my spouse and me, we were able to pay off our student loans in 10 years or less, as many of our peers did, with little difficult.  

Nowadays, the data show student loans may be more of a detriment than a help.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday  for a new segment.


This is not financial or education advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2012 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Protected Our Daughter's College Accounts

In early June 2011, I cashed out 2/3's of our daughter's mutual funds in her college accounts.   At my spouse's request, we kept 1/3 of the accounts fully invested in the mutual funds.  As it turned out, I sold off too soon.  The invested account gained enough in July to be 7% higher than the cash accounts.    It's too bad that we didn't sell the account invested  mutual funds at that point.   In August, the mutual fund account lost its 7% advantage and then some.  The invested account is now about 15% below the cash account.

The college accounts have a one time per year reallocation restriction.  So I won't be able to move back into mutual funds until 2012.  But given the current performance of the stock market, I think I can wait that long before reinvesting funds in the stock market.
 
For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.
This is not financial  or investing advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2011 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

College 529 Account Returns are Flat for 2010

Although we typically make our college saving account contributions in January, I decided to wait in 2010 in case the market dipped again. In preparation for the 2010 contributions, I reviewed the current status of our college 529 savings accounts. We originally opened the accounts in December 2005 and have made the maximum state tax deductible contribution for each year. Through 2008, we invested the contributions evenly in the Aggressive Growth, 500 Index, Extended Market, and International funds with Vanguard. In 2009, we changed our contribution mix and added to the Aggressive Growth, Extended Market and Morgan Growth (new for 2009) funds.

The table below shows the total return for the contributions that have been made to date. The first column shows how the bear market of 2008 significantly reduced our college savings accounts. Not only were all the gains from 2006 and 2007 eliminated, the losses also reduced the principal from the contributions. However, the recovery since March 9, 2009 has enabled the accounts to break even. Most of the improvement in the 529 accounts had occurred by 10/14/09. For 2010, the return has essentially been flat. Here are the results as of 9/14/10:

	Returns
Fund	Total Return 11/5/08	Total Return 10/14/09	Total Return 1/6/10	Total Return 9/14/10
Vanguard Aggressive Growth Index Portfolio	-25.08%	-0.51%	3.39%	3.13%
Vanguard 500 Index	-27.74%	-15.15%	-11.24%	-11.32%
Vanguard Extended Market Index	-29.89%	-1.63%	5.98%	10.17%
Vanguard Developed Markets International Stock Index	-31.25%	-11.09%	-9.91%	-12.72%
Vanguard Morgan Growth	-	27.22%	34.50%	34.06%
Total	- 28.74	-3.61%	0.04%	0.06%

This analysis had shown me the high volatility of equity investments in our 529 plans. Since our daughter is 13 years away from attending college, we will continue to invest the funds in the stock market. When it gets closer to needing the funds, we will definitely want to avoid this level of fluctuation. Thus, we plan to move a significant portion to interest bearing accounts within 2-4 years of needing the money for college.

In addition, this analysis shows the benefit of continuing to make contributions as the market declines, i.e. dollar cost averaging downward. The 2009 contributions, made in January 2009, were distributed among the Aggressive Growth Index, Extended Market Index and Morgan Growth Index funds. Those funds are now above the amount principal contributed. The other two funds, which did not receive any contributions in 2009, are still below the original principal, being down 11.32% and 12.72%

Our plan is to make the maximum state tax deductible contribution for 2010.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial, saving or investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2010 Achievement Catalyst, LLC