For students who love to go to college but are struggling financially, Detroit is offering tuition-free to Detroit high school graduates. If you are living in Detroit, your ticket to
According to Detroit Free Press, high school graduates in the city - be it from public, charter or private schools are entitled to a two tuition-free years of community college under a program, The Detroit Promise.
"We are making a promise to every single child who graduates from a high school in the City of Detroit that you will have your first two years of college paid for," said Mayor Mike Duggan. "We're going to build from here to the point where we're ultimately going to raise money so it can be four years, but today it's two years."
According to Deadline Detroit, starting next fall, students can attend at any of the following community colleges in metro Detroit:
- Henry Ford Community College
- Wayne County Community College District
- Schoolcraft College
- Macomb Community College
- Oakland Community College
Per Detroit Free Press, the first two years will be funded through philanthropy by major foundations and corporate donors. Peter Remington, a philanthropy who has been raising funds for the program revealed that three major foundations already pledged $1 million each. However, he only identified one of the three. Students should thank The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation.
Meanwhile, in 2018, the program will be funded by increases in property tax revenue. It will capture half of any increase in property tax revenue from the SET.
"We're not really sure how it's going to impact our enrollment," college spokesman Frank Ruggirello told Hometown Life about the new program and its potential impact on enrollment. They are still not sure if these will significantly increase their number of enrollees.
Ruggirello hopes that the Detroit Promise program will attract students who are looking for a degree in a multitude of programs. However, he noted that one of the challenges is transportation because there are no SMART or DDOT bus lines that run to the college in Livonia. However, he said that the college officials are already working on it.
"We believe from top to bottom our programs are better than anyone else's," Ruggirello said. "Our classes are very challenging. You're coming to college when you come here."
What do you think of the Detroit Promise? Do you wish other cities also offer the same program? Share your thoughts below.
