There’s high demand for the Whitmer administration’s Michigan Reconnect program, which pays tuition and some fees for residents at community colleges. It’s unclear how many will follow through to enrollment and finish their degree.
Hoping to avoid more undergraduate enrollment dips, college counselors have hustled students through application cycles, cuing new urgency in completing forms for financial aid.
College-access groups are offering innovative ways to tackle the complex Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that most American students must complete to finance their college education. Approaches to overcoming barriers include drive-thru help, virtual guidance, hotlines, and incentives like gift cards and free meals.
Why We Wrote This
How is the pandemic altering equitable access to college? New initiatives strive to ensure that college-bound students aren’t held back by missing paperwork.
Less than half of the high school class of 2021 completed the FAFSA by April 23, a 6.1% drop compared with this time last year, according to the National College Attainment Network. Low-income and high-minority schools show larger declines in completion than other schools. Still, the gap is narrowin
He was ready for a long-term career change when his wife saw an online ad touting a program to enroll in community college for free.
This summer, Young, 36, will be a first-time college student, compliments of a state program designed for adults like him who ve never attended or completed college.
The Michigan Reconnect program, launched in February by the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, allows state residents age 25 and older to attend local community colleges tuition-free, as long as they have a high school diploma or equivalent and didn’t already graduate from college.
It took Young an hour to fill out the application, and a few days later he was accepted to Henry Ford College in Dearborn, a mile from his house.
Bridge senior writer and projects editor Ron French was joined by Maddy Day, board chair of the Michigan College Access Network, and Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, president of Oakland University, for an hour-long discussion on this important topic.
(Reader note: We apologize for some technical difficulties around minute 9 of the video. These issues are resolved quickly.)
Bridge’s Lunch Break monthly series focuses on timely topics. Previous discussions have focused on racial equity in Michigan, the impact of COVID-19 on K-12 education, high water levels in the Great Lakes, the November election, readers’ COVID-19-related questions, Bridge’s coverage plans for 2021, coronavirus vaccine distribution and transparency in Michigan government.
On April 29, Bridge Michigan senior writer Ron French will moderate a Zoom discussion with Michigan College Access Network board chair Maddy Day and Oakland University President Ora Hirsch Pescovitz on the impact of COVID on higher education this fall and beyond.