By Steve Babcock

In the midst of a week-long tour of college campuses, Sen. John F. Kerry addressed student concerns, from social security to military service, in a conference call Tuesday from Providence, R.I.

Kerry, who is the assumed Democratic presidential candidate, called on young people to demonstrate they can be the same kind of “driving force that inspired civil rights and women’s rights in the 1960s.”

“Young people have this enormous power, and they need to find it again,” Kerry said. “They have to re-emerge as the great political force in this country they once were.”

The Massachusetts senator said such a call to action was the motivation behind the college tour he is conducting this week, in which he is highlighting major differences between himself and President George W. Bush with regard to higher education policy.

The difference, he said, was his willingness to reverse the 28 percent increase in tuition over the past two years.

“The current administration has made its own fundamental choice to cut student loans and Pell grants,” Kerry said. “In effect, Bush’s tax cut to the wealthy has resulted in a tuition tax.”

Kerry said he plans to remedy the problem by providing relief to the states, in which there is currently a $200 billion funding gap, and introduce new tax credits that will go directly to students.

One of these tax credits includes a full tuition reimbursement by the government if a student agrees to two years of community service.

“This will give college students a chance to serve their community locally,” Kerry said.

That program, originally a centerpiece of Kerry’s economic plan, was scaled back last week as a result of what his campaign said was the “shifting economy.”

When asked about the change, the senator did not comment.

Kerry was also asked about his plan to send 10 million new troops to Iraq, which has also been a hot issue for younger demographics in recent weeks, as young people are currently the most prevalent age group in Iraq.

Kerry said while he would not institute a draft, young people would be more approving of going to war if he were president as a result of a better foreign policy.

“By taking a more reasonable approach to the rest of the world, people will approve of their government’s decisions,” he said.

In terms of the issues Kerry said he would rely on to appeal to college students, missing were the Iraq war, and similar things that were formerly part of his agenda.

Instead, Kerry stuck to the same plan he, along with the rest of the Democratic party, have been selling to the rest of the nation for years.

“We’re going to create 10 million new jobs — the kinds of high tech, high paying jobs that college graduates can benefit from,” he said. “We’re going to pave the way for more gains in terms of energy independence that will create 500,000 jobs alone. Every American, including college students, will also have health care.”

At Northeastern, no defining reason for students to get behind Kerry could be found.

Some, such as freshman engineering major John Brosnan, said his interest in the campaign was solely based on the climate of the times.

“I have friends who are joining the Army, and obviously there’s all this stuff coming out about 9/11,” he said, referring to the recent September 11 Commission hearings that could ultimately brand the administration responsible for the attacks.

Other students did indeed say Kerry would be easier to get behind if he was offering new perspectives.

“Maybe I would be more interested if [Kerry] had something unique he would fix about health care, rather than the same old opinion,” said Larah Kahaw, a senior pharmacy major.

Kahaw said she did plan to vote, and would base her decision on people around her.

For Student Government Association President Michael Romano, who has been active in getting young people into politics through his participation in Boston Intercollegiate Government, Kerry is doing some, but not enough to truly create a wave in younger voters.

“Outreach to young voters needs to be a lot more than a token photo opportunity and more about substantive issues that affect America’s future,” Romano said. “If Kerry wants to win the young vote, he’s going to have to prove he’s not another traveling and apathetic leader.”