Stories about college affordability seem to be dominating the newspapers right now. The acceptance letters have gone out…and parents and teens are now faced with the question of how to pay for college!

Clark speculates we're seeing so many newspaper stories about this topic because reporters have college-age kids themselves. They're trying to figure out how to fund education too!

College has become cost-prohibitive for many Americans. Even the state schools have run up their tuitions as they face state budget crunches.

So have you thought about a 2-year community college? This option has long been recommended by the consumer champ as a way to start your education on the cheap.

Community colleges are now allowed to offer 4-year bachelor degrees in 17 states, according to The New York Times. Historically, community colleges only offered 2-year associate degrees.

Florida alone now has more than a dozen community colleges offering bachelor degrees.

Let's say you decide to do your first 2 years at a community college. People often worry about the lack of prestige. But most employers only look at the name of the traditional college that issues your degree after you've put in your time at a community school.

In fact, Clark believes an employer might even prefer someone who worked their way through a community college and had to struggle financially. Doesn't that make for a more compelling story than a job candidate who cruised through a 4-year college on the silver spoon plan?

So if you're contemplating borrowing yourself into oblivion to pay for school, perhaps the alternative is 2 or even 4 affordable years of college at a community school.