FREE TUITION IN NY: New York will soon become the first state in the nation to make college free for middle-income families. Through the Excelsior Scholarship program, families that make up to $125,000 per year will be exempt from paying tuition at New York’s public colleges and universities. According to an announcement from the office of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, nearly 80 percent of families in the state with college-aged children could qualify.
Cuomo’s college budget deal, which passed late last Friday and also includes $8 million for educational resources like books, represents a big win for Democrats including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who have been advocating for free college tuition across the U.S. But some critics (including a few pushing for free-college) have said Cuomo’s plan falls short in that students must use up their existing federal and state financial aid before Excelsior kicks in.
The program is slated to be phased in over the next three years. The first phase will begin in Fall 2017 for students with families who make less than $100,000 and increase to $125,000 in 2019.
