Middlesex County College (MCC) is one of 13 community colleges in New Jersey that will be offering free tuition and fees to eligible students.
“Today, we are putting the dream of higher education within reach of more students and more families,” Gov. Phil Murphy said during the announcement at Union County College in Cranford on Sept. 27. “Making community college tuition free will help New Jersey’s young people and working adults earn post-secondary degrees to advance their careers – and it will help build the talented workforce that is the engine of our state’s economy.”
All 19 community colleges applied to be a part of the Community College Innovation Challenge pilot program. The 2019 state budget includes new funding for the first phase of Murphy’s community college initiative, including up to $20 million for Community College Opportunity Grant (CCOG) awards to be applied directly to eligible student accounts.
Students with adjusted gross incomes of $45,000 or less who take six or more credits in the spring 2019 semester will be eligible to receive CCOG awards to cover tuition and educational fees, after applying any other federal or state grant aid, such as federal Pell grants or New Jersey Tuition Assistance Grants. This initiative is the first step toward the governor’s long-term goal to offer two years of free community college to all New Jersey residents, according to a statement prepared by MCC.
“We highlighted outreach efforts we are currently doing, as well as additional recruitment efforts we will do with the grant funds (e.g., hiring an additional part-time recruiters, increasing marketing efforts). We also mentioned increased communication with county municipalities and others (including our own students) to make sure everyone is aware of this program,” said Thomas Peterson, director of Marketing Communications for MCC. “In addition, we highlighted the steps we are taking to promote student success – New Student Orientation, New Student Day, Group Advising, Guided Pathways, the Student Success course, the Learning Center, Student Success Coaches, etc., in other words, attempting to alleviate barriers to students being successful.”
Mark McCormick, interim president of MCC, said he was thrilled the school is on the list.
“At MCC, we support the governor’s vision of making community college free,” he said in the statement. “We are very pleased that beginning in January, eligible residents of Middlesex County may take advantage of this additional source of aid that will ensure that all tuition and fees are covered. With this new state grant, we can expand educational opportunities for Middlesex County residents. Studies show that earning an Associate Degree increases lifetime earning capacity. MCC will soon be reaching out to share this good news with everyone in Middlesex County.”
In addition, each community college in New Jersey will receive $250,000 in planning grant funds to assist in the implementation of the new program.
“We are very excited about the opportunities that the planning grant will afford us,” McCormick said in the statement. “It will help us to expand our outreach to further connect with our community to identify new students who will benefit from the governor’s plan and to enhance our support resources to ensure that students have access to the help they’ll need to achieve their educational goals at MCC. We look forward to the opportunity to serve more students while maintaining the focus on our mission to provide access to a quality, affordable education for our community.”