New York just OK'd tuition-free college for middle class
New York just became the first state in the nation to make tuition free for middle class students at both two- and four-year public colleges.
Governor Andrew Cuomo introduced the tuition-free plan in January . Lawmakers agreed to include it in the state budget, which was approved by the Assembly on Saturday and by the Senate late Sunday night. The governor is expected to sign the budget bills.
Tuition will be free for residents who earn up to a specific income cap, which will be phased in over the first three years.
Starting this fall, undergraduate students who attend a State University of New York or City University of New York school will be eligible for the Excelsior Scholarship if their families earn no more than $100,000 a year. The income cap will lift to $110,000 next year and will reach $125,000 in 2019.
Those eligible will pay nothing for tuition, which costs $6,470 annually at four-year schools and about $4,350 a year at community colleges. But they will still be on the hook for the cost of fees and room and board if they live on campus. Those other expenses can add up to $14,000 a year.
Students must take 30 credits a year to receive the scholarship. Some lawmakers had spoken out against this requirement , because it excludes students who enroll part time.
In the final proposal, Cuomo said the credit requirement is "flexible" so that any student facing hardship will be able to pause and restart the program, or take fewer credits one semester than another.
After they graduate, students who receive the scholarship must live and work in New York for the same number of years they received funding. If they leave the state, their scholarship will be converted into a loan. This requirement was not included in the governor's initial proposal .
"Today, college is what high school was -- it should always be an option even if you can't afford it," Governor Cuomo said in a statement.
His office has estimated the scholarship will cost $163 million in the first year, but some lawmakers say that's lowballing it. An estimated 200,000 students would be eligible once the program is fully implemented.
The scholarship is structured to fill in the gap after accounting for other federal and state grants. Nearly half of full-time SUNY students, and more than 60% of those at CUNY, already pay nothing for tuition because of need-based federal Pell Grants or New York Tuition Assistance grants. Those students would not be eligible for the Excelsior Scholarship.
SUNY Chairman Carl McCall and Chancellor Nancy Zimpher applauded the budget deal in a statement released by the school, calling the plan "truly ground-breaking."
But they also said they had "hoped for additional support," especially for SUNY community colleges, which they expect to have more students because of the scholarship.
Some Republican lawmakers criticized the governor's proposal during budget negotiations for excluding students at private colleges.
The final budget includes an additional $19 million to create a new financial assistance program for private school students whose families make under the income cap, according to the governor. Those students would get a maximum award of $3,000. Colleges that participate would have to match that funding and agree to not raise the student's tuition during her enrollment.
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http://money.cnn.com/2017/04/08/pf/college/new-york-free-tuition/
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As New Yorker, I am proud that this Governor had the will to do something Big and Productive, these are the kinds of programs I want to see when we pay such high taxes in New York...Good Health Care+ Good Education = A Healthy and Productive Society...People complaining "where is the money going to come from" That Question should be addressed to DONALD TRUMP... his Every Weekend excursions to MAR-A-LARGO while the Citizens of NEW YORK CITY continue paying Security for his MONSTROSITY named "TRUMP TOWERS" costing the city $500,000 each week...
Does Melania Trump's security detail cost more than federal arts budget?
President Donald Trump, the tweeter in chief. People are turning to Trump’s favorite social medium to complain about tax dollars spent protecting first lady Melania Trump and son Barron, who still live in Trump Tower in New York.
One common comparison we’ve seen says that Melania Trump’s security detail at Trump Tower costs more than the annual budget for the National Endowment for the Arts, which the administration reportedly has considered eliminating altogether.
During the transition period, the city took on most of the cost of protecting the Trumps in New York. A spokesperson for New York mayor Bill de Blasio told us Donald, Melania and Barron Trump ran up a $37 million bill for security from Election Day to the inauguration Jan. 20. (De Blasio has requested the federal government reimburse his city for security costs , and Congress has doled about $7 million.)
In comparison, the city of Chicago spent at least $2.2 million to protect Obama’s home in Chicago from his election in November 2008 to his inauguration in January 2009, the Chicago Tribun e reported .
Education for New York Middle Class Families Taxpayers Money Well Spent...
So here is my feelings on this as a New Yorker.
1. I think it is a great idea, but I do feel that tuition should be granted to every NYer, since we all pay taxes.
2. I love the fact that it covers our 2 year colleges which are actually trade schools
3. I am curious to the funding, but there was a time when SUNY and CUNY were free. When I went to CUNY, I only paid $900 a year ('78-'82). Now it is up to almost $7,000, which is still a bargain, but tough on families who can't afford. That is 7 times the fees that I paid and outpaces inflation, which would have had it at $2,660.71
If your family makes over one hundred thousand you are not eligible but will be stuck paying for your deadbeat neighbors that quit their jobs to get the freebies. It is a socialist theft and redistribution program.
I have no problem with New York paying taxes to provide trade school or college education for the young people in their state.
In spite of this, there should be some conditions in going forward with the so-called free education. And Perrie, I'm not coming down on your state. Almost every state in this country is in the hole financially.
You have to promote the mentality of making oneself better and this may accomplish that. You can't allow people who haven't proven themselves to take advantage of this opportunity for one thing. You can't have people who move to NY in order to take advantage of this opportunity without stipulations. You can't just pass this and let it run on it's own without close observance to make sure it is working as it was sold to the public.
Nothing is free, no more than having people come into this country illegally and receive benefits because they can make babies. Someone has to pay.
The main thing this country needs are good parents who want more for their children than they had and promoting the mental image inside the child's head of a better future than the past. You have to motivate everyone to take responsibility for themselves and learn you get just what you put into life, instead of get all you can without putting any effort into it.
Good intentions are not worth the effort unless the end product is realized to be worth it.
I wonder how all this is working out for Germany? I hope it is helping them.