Press Release: 2024-05-07
Senate Leaders Unveil MassEducate: Universal Free Community College for Massachusetts Residents
Plan included in the Senate’s FY2025 budget would help meet workforce needs, expand opportunity for students and families
LOWELL (5/6/2024)—Today, Senate leaders unveiled MassEducate, a proposal for tuition-free, universal community college for all Massachusetts residents which is aimed at boosting the state’s workforce and expanding opportunity for students and families in every part of the state.
The announcement was made during an event at Middlesex Community College in Lowell, where Senate President Karen Spilka, Senate Ways & Means Chair Michael Rodrigues, and Senate Higher Education Chair Jo Comerford gathered with members of the Senate, presidents of the Commonwealth’s 15 community colleges, business leaders, students, and advocates.
“Today, we shift conversations about college from ‘I wish,’ to ‘I will,’ for thousands of students and families in Massachusetts,” said Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). “We are investing in talent that is right here at home, and opening the workforce floodgates to employers who are starved for graduates, so Massachusetts keeps the competitive edge that we pride ourselves in. I’m tremendously grateful to Senate Ways and Means Chair Rodrigues and Senate Higher Education Chair Comerford for their work, to our members for their support, and the students, educators, advocates, and business leaders who have poured their expertise into this proposal to transform thousands of lives.”
“I’m thrilled that we have taken access to higher education to the next level, as this initiative will bolster our educated workforce and lay the foundation for generations to come. Tuition free Community College impacts individuals most in need and whom otherwise would not be afforded this opportunity. It will greatly help to keep our workforce graduates stand ready to meet the challenges of a global economy,” said Senator Michael J. Rodrigues (D-Westport), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means.
“With the historic investments announced today, ushering in universally-free community college and more, the Senate doubles down on our commitment to build back the power and promise of public higher education. The Senate investments will propel the Commonwealth forward toward greater social equity and greater economic competitiveness,” said Senator Jo Comerford (D-Northampton), Senate Chair of the Committee on Higher Education. “I am deeply grateful to Senate President Karen Spilka for her steadfast leadership and to Senate Ways and Means Chair Michael Rodrigues for prioritizing higher education in the proposed Senate budget. I am proud to work with all of our colleagues in the Senate who join me in believing that public higher education is our state's greatest equity and economic engine. Investing today means a brighter tomorrow, for all.”
MassEducate would invest $75.5 million in new spending to cover tuition and fees for all residents, and offer an up to $1,200 stipend for books, supplies, and other costs to students who make 125% or less of median income in the state. Pell-eligible students already eligible for a books stipend through state financial aid would also be eligible for a stipend for books, supplies, and costs of attendance, for a combined amount of up to $2,400 per year.
The Senate’s plan, which will be included in the chamber’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget, would continue to invest in programs created in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, including $18 million in free nursing programs at community colleges and $24 million in free community college for residents over 25.
Students would be eligible for free tuition and fees and the stipend in the fall 2025 semester if the proposal is included in the Commonwealth’s final Fiscal Year 2025 budget.
To support students whose education paths can be jeopardized by unanticipated life events, leaders announced the creation of the Student Persistence Fund, a $10 million investment which would go directly towards aiding community colleges and state universities in supporting low-income students with such costs that are shown to put someone’s chance of finishing school at risk, such as transportation, childcare, or food insecurity.
Understanding that retention and graduation is directly tied to support systems like advising and career planning, the Senate proposed an $18.3 investment in the SUCCESS Program, Supporting Urgent Community College Equity through Student Services, which is designed for community colleges to invest in wraparound supports and services using models proven to strengthen outcomes for students facing systemic barriers, especially for colleges’ most underserved populations.
To ensure the long-term fiscal sustainability of the program, the Senate’s proposal would institute annual tuition increase caps at community colleges set at an inflation index. And to hold community colleges accountable for producing the outcomes we so need, the proposal creates a working group to reevaluate community college performance funding, aimed at better aligning state funding with key metrics such as student success and workforce alignment.
Recognizing that many Massachusetts students opt directly for our four-year universities, the budget makes a historic $105 million investment in Massachusetts financial assistance program, MassGrant Plus, which keeps college costs low for students at all public colleges in the Commonwealth. This increased investment builds on recent investments which have allowed for all Pell-eligible students in Massachusetts to go to a community college, state university, or UMass Campus without paying tuition or fees.
“We are immeasurably grateful to the Senate for including free community college for all in their budget proposal,” said Jim Vander Hooven, President of Mount Wachusett Community College and chair of the Community College Council of Presidents. “MassReconnect has proven that removing the burden of cost offers students who once thought college was outside their reach the chance to pursue their dreams and improve their career prospects. Expanding free community college to students of all ages will change lives and boost the Commonwealth's workforce. We look forward to working together to make this proposal a reality for Massachusetts.”
“Middlesex Community College is proud to join this endeavor with the Senate leadership and our sister campuses from across the state of Massachusetts who educate our workforce by the tens of thousands every year,” said Phil Sisson, President of Middlesex Community College. “MassReconnect has been a Commonwealth of Massachusetts results-producing policy that provided a vigorous catalyst that brought over a thousand adults over the age of 25 to our Lowell and Bedford campuses at Middlesex to pursue their education since it was signed into law last August. Now, all of our campuses look forward to welcoming and supporting all future students who will be able to take advantage of MassEducate when this latest game changing program takes effect.”
The proposal additionally includes policy directives to study future paths to success for the Commonwealth’s students. It directs the Department of Higher Education (DHE) to improve the credit transfer pathway between two- and four-year institutions so students can easily transfer to a public 4-year institution. It also creates a new commission to evaluate current state financial assistance for students to attend State Universities and UMass and evaluate ways to further ensure accessibility and affordability of a high-quality education at these institutions.