HE leaders hail Biden plan to boost access and retention
United States President Joe Biden has proposed to Congress a US$109 billion plan to provide two free years of community college education to all Americans, “so that every student has the ability to obtain a degree or certificate”.
In addition, he is calling for a substantial hike in the level of Pell Grants for students from economically disadvantaged families to help them seek a certificate or a two- or four-year degree, requiring a further US$80 billion investment.
Biden is proposing to raise the maximum Pell Grant award by US$1,400, provide two years of subsidised tuition to historically black colleges and other minority-serving institutions for students from families who earn less than US$125,000 and are enrolled in a four-year college, and establish a grant programme to fund student success services at colleges that serve a high number of low-income students.
The plan has the support of the American Association of Community Colleges, which has been advocating for tuition-free community college for several years, said David Baime, senior vice president for government relations and policy analysis for AACC.
“We think that the proposal will have a dramatic positive impact on the ability of students to successfully participate in community college education,” Baime said.
The additional funding for HBCUs and MSIs was praised by National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education president and CEO Lezli Baskerville, who called the proposed investments transformational. [The investments are] sorely needed to ensure that HBCUs, predominantly Black institutions and other postsecondary institutions that educate disproportionate percentages of persons of least advantage are prepared, inspired and supported into and through college graduation, Baskerville said.
America’s College Promise Act would make two years of community college free
The federal government would chip in three dollars for every one dollar a state puts into the program
April 27, 2021 6:47 PM Martha Koloski
Updated:
The average balance for federal and private student loan borrowers in Wisconsin is just over 30-thousand dollars.
Some lawmakers want to make the first two years of community college free to create more trained workers in the state and reduce that student debt load.
Today, a group of lawmakers reintroduced The America’s College Promise Act.
It creates federal-state partnerships to provide two years of tuition-free access to community or technical college programs that lead to a degree or industry-recognized credentials.
KXLY
April 28, 2021 3:27 PM Connor Sarles
Sincerely Media
WASHINGTON, D.C. Washington Senator Patty Murray and others reintroduced legislation to provide students two free years of community college.
The ‘America’s College Promise Act’ aims to create federal and state partnerships to get people two years of tuition-free access to community or technical college programs, as well as two years of tuition and fee grant aid at a four-year historical Black college or minority-serving institution.
The goal is to remove the socio-economic barriers of skills, credentials and a degree that many families face.
“As a former community college instructor in Washington State, I have personally seen the positive change that community colleges make in students’ lives. These institutions create pathways for students to pursue higher education and provide training for individuals to enter the workforce,” said Murray. “But higher education is far too expen
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