>>Walter+(OP)
It all does not have to be free, just a government funded option to provide a floor. Public school was my only saving grace, being from an immigrant family that did not know English or how to navigate America.
Although, I also do not think government needs to pay for free schooling for 17 years. Can easily cut some fluff and drop that to 15 years, and still give people a solid foundation equivalent to a Bachelors.