College funds are different in every family. Some kids don't get a cent for their education, and some parents put thousands of dollars away in a protected 529 Fund so that it cannot be used for anything other than education. I'd say that most families are somewhere in the middle, with some having their kids' college funds stashed away in the stock market and others using a regular savings account that could be repurposed if college isn't what their kid's future entails. It makes sense that paying the mortgage is more important for middle-class families than being able to afford $70,000 per year tuition at Boston University. It's not just broad-familial financial issues that can deplete a college fund. It's also the actions of the prospective college student. One mother used some of her daughter's college money (her late husband's life insurance money) to pay for mental health treatments, and her mother and father-in-law disagreed with this choice vehemently.
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