Go to college tuition free
Free tuition as a tool for economic development? Some communities around the country are seeking to improve their economic vitality by enticing a valuable resource—their children—to stay close to home. By offering high school graduates free tuition, many areas are hoping to develop a high-quality, homegrown workforce.
The Kalamazoo Promise: Graduates of public high schools in Kalamazoo, Mich., can receive a scholarship that pays tuition for up to four years at any Michigan public university or community college if they make regular progress toward a degree or certification, maintain a 2.0 grade-point average, and take a minimum of 12 credit hours per semester. The tuition benefit is graduated based on time spent in the Kalamazoo public schools, with students who attended grades K-12 getting 100 percent of their tuition covered. Students must have been enrolled in the school district for at least four years to qualify.
Oklahoma Higher Learning Access Program: Oklahoma residents with a family income of less than $50,000 at the time of enrollment who maintain a 2.5 high school GPA and take a set of required college-preparatory courses can receive free tuition at Oklahoma public institutions and partial tuition at Oklahoma private schools if they maintain a 1.7 GPA for their first 30 credit hours and a 2.0 GPA after that.
Garrett County Commissioners Scholarship Program: Garrett County, Md., residents of two years or more who graduate from Garrett County high schools, enroll full time at Garrett College, and maintain a 2.0 GPA may receive the difference between the other forms of aid for which the student qualifies and the full cost of tuition.
Educate and Grow Scholarship: A graduate of any Kingsport, Tenn., city or Sullivan County high school whose parents have been residents for at least one year may receive two years' free tuition to Northeast State Community College if they maintain a 2.0 GPA and work toward an associate's degree.
J. F. Drake State Technical College in Huntsville, Ala., offers free summer-session tuition to recent high school graduates of Madison, Jackson, Bedford, Franklin, Giles, Lawrence, Lincoln, Marion, Marshall, and Moore counties who have at least a 2.5 high school GPA.
The Newton Promise: In a program recently approved by voters and expected to begin in 2007, all students who graduate from a Newton (Iowa) high school, reside in the district, and have been students there for four or more years will receive college tuition funding for four years at an Iowa university, two years at an Iowa community college, or an equivalent amount to apply toward tuition at a private college in Iowa. The amount of funding depends upon a student's years of residency in the Newton district and attendance at its public schools.