The "value" of college, like anything else, is subjective. The key here would be on how one defines "value" and given that this is difficult to determine, it is directed by he who holds the purse. So, the value of a college degree has become about how much money you EARN as a ratio of the debt you incurred; your employment status after earning said degree; the KIND of employment from the degree, etc. All cost driven measurements.
According to the AACU report (https://www.aacu.org/college-worth-time-and-money-it-depends-whom-you-ask), employers place the highest value on a college degree. Now, we all know of at least one employer that require a degree for a position for which there is no correlation in any way, shape or form. The degree has become a filter/screening process rather than the "value" that applicant could add.
If we were honest in higher ed, the question wouldn't be if college is worth the time and money but rather if the value ascribed to college is more about perpetrating a system rather than providing a universal "value"
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