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Skepticism of Murphy plan for another two years of free college
State lawmakers appear cool to Gov. Phil Murphy’s plan for a new state program providing some students two tuition-free years at public four-year colleges in New Jersey, building on an existing program that covers two years at community colleges.
For eligible students from families with adjusted gross incomes of $65,000 or less, the combination offers the prospect of earning two college degrees without paying tuition or fees.
“As the kind of chorus nationally grows for free college and investments in free college, New Jersey can actually be a trendsetter and serve as a model for the rest of the nation,” said state Higher Education Secretary Brian Bridges.
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February 27, 2021 at 8:01 AM
JERSEY CITY, NJ - Standing out in the cold in a small park near the Hudson County Community College’s Culinary Arts building, Hudson County Executive Tom Degise welcomed Gov. Phil Murphy and other key educational leaders for the signing of what many called “game changing” legislation.
Started three year ag as a pilot, The Community College Opportunity Grant Program (CCOG), will, with Murphy s signature, move ahead as a permanent opportunity that cannot be changed by future administrations, the governor said. The program provides free tuition and approved educational fees for qualifying students.
Students whose adjusted gross income (AGI) is under $65,000, who have exhausted all other avenues of finance, can apply to receive funding that would cover the remaining costs of their community college.
Credit: (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
File photo: May 13, 2018, new graduates walk into the High Point Solutions Stadium before the start of the Rutgers University graduation ceremony in Piscataway Township.
New Jersey’s Tuition Aid Grant program is significant in helping students graduate on time, particularly those at the lowest income levels and those attending the state’s four-year public colleges, according to a study that state officials plan to use as they consider possible changes to the decades-old program.
In a report released earlier this month on the Tuition Aid Grant (TAG) program, the nonpartisan RAND Corporation found that $1,000 in additional aid over four years led to a 2.6 percentage point increase in the on-time graduation rate at New Jersey’s public universities. Additionally, TAG had a “positive” effect on the lowest-income recipients attending community colleges and private universities.