College degrees cost more than ever. But education insiders note the growing popularity of online programs, saying the cheaper alternatives could erase the need for students to rack up six figures of loan debt for tuition, room and board at residential campuses. Jason Altmire, who leads Career Education Colleges and Universities, a network of for-profit campuses, said that before the COVID pandemic, “there was a belief among some that an online education was somehow inferior or substandard to