Actually, making college free for QUALIFIED applicants might work.
However, the word QUALIFIED would eliminate 99.999999% of the lib arts students, and even some of the quota STEM types.
Too many colleges, too little intellect.
If you think that an American company is looking out for the best interests of Americans, or American workers, you are sadly mistaken.
If you think that you can compete with third world labor, you are sadly mistaken.
If you think that you are immune from outsourcing, or that you cannot be replaced by a foreign national, you're whistling past the graveyard.
As long as there are people in the world who will do your job cheaper than what you will do it for, and as long there are people in the world who will exploit that fact for all that it is worth, no job, no knowledge, or no economy is safe.
It's a looter's and barbarian's world now. Get used to it, or you will either succeed, or get killed.