NSCC to Pilot “Free College” North Shore Promise Award Program

Danvers, MA – This fall North Shore Community College will become the first community college in the Northeast to offer a self-funded “free college” pilot program for 100 eligible incoming students.

The “North Shore Promise Award” pilot program will seek to attract those “missing” college students who are being priced out of higher education as they are not poor enough to qualify for full federal and state grant aid, can’t pay out of pocket, or are too risk-adverse to utilize student loans.

Applications are now being accepted for the pilot on a first-come, first-served basis for the first 100 qualified students. Students need to apply for a FAFSA and the program by May 1 to be eligible for the most robust financial aid package.

“NSCC is committed to making college affordable for even more students to achieve the life-long dream of a college degree with less student debt,” said NSCC President Patricia A. Gentile. “The North Shore Promise Award will reduce the direct cost to attend NSCC to zero for new full-time students who are eligible for financial aid but lack enough grant funds to cover tuition and fees.”

“Commonwealth residents are opting out of pursuing post-secondary education and training as the sticker shock of a college degree and pervasive stories of crippling student debt have many questioning the return on college investment,” Gentile said. “This is especially true for lower and middle income families who are rapidly being priced out of the college-going market.  And, this is especially bad news for area employers competing for skilled and credentialed workers.”

Gentile explained that years of analysis of enrollment data led NSCC to the realization that there are a significant number of potential students who despite the relative affordability of community college (NSCC’s annual tuition and fees for a full-time student are $6,060), fall into the gap of not believing they can afford an education. “With a booming economy these folks are choosing employment, but we know that without post-secondary qualifications they are at great risk for unemployment or lack of advancement potential when the economy declines,” Gentile noted.

To address this gap, along with declining enrollments and unmet employer needs for skilled and educated workers, NSCC conceived of this pilot for 100 new full-time students to launch in the fall of 2017. “We anticipate that most of those who will take advantage of this offer will be first generation college goers likely to come from more disadvantaged North Shore neighborhoods. These are the folks who are having the most difficulty affording the cost of a college degree, yet they compose the largest untapped pool of undeveloped talent for those future high and middle skilled jobs” Gentile said.

To be eligible for the North Shore Promise award, potential students must: enroll as a new student in at least 15 credits, in an eligible Commonwealth Commitment Pathway or an eligible NSCC program, for the Fall 2017 semester; be a Massachusetts resident prior to September 1, 2016;  have a 2.3 high school GPA at time of application or Accuplacer placement at or near college level; file a 2017-18 FAFSA prior to May 1, 2017; be eligible for a Federal Pell Grant, as determined by the Federal Government and confirmed by NSCC, with an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) between $3,800 – $5,328; be willing to complete a degree at NSCC in 2.5 years or 5 continuous semesters; and meet NSCC’s Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements throughout enrollment in the North Shore Promise Award.

For more information go to: www.northshore.edu/promise.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.