I have a future : how Biden s free community college plan could transform education | US education theguardian.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theguardian.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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.
Black higher ed groups push for NC Rep Alma Adams to be Biden s education secretary | Tribune mdjonline.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from mdjonline.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.