Tuition-free college gains momentum across states

President Joe Biden may have tabled his bid for universal free community college, but states and municipalities are keeping the momentum going with new or expanded programs to cover tuition.

At least seven tuition-free initiatives have publicly launched since November, according to the College Promise campaign, which advocates making the first two or more years of college free.

College Promise programs, as tuition-free initiatives are commonly known, enjoy widespread support. Forty-seven states and Washington D.C. have at least one such program at the college, city or state level. There are 33 statewide programs that cover tuition at community colleges or universities and higher education, and experts say the number is likely to grow.

Critics of universal public college say the price tag is unsustainable and that too many of the schools have poor outcomes, with fewer than 40 percent of students earning a degree within six years. Advocates argue that could be remedied by providing more financial aid to keep students on track.

A handful of bills have been introduced this Congress to provide tuition-free access to community college or public universities, but none have advanced.

Biden is still calling for the federal government to step up its role in subsidizing college. In his first State of the Union address this week, the president urged Congress to “invest in what Jill, our first lady, … calls America’s best-kept secret: community colleges.”

Advocates welcome the commitment as they say federal dollars are critical for the longevity of College Promise programs.

“There is a real opportunity to build on what local communities and states are doing,” said Martha Kanter, the executive director of the nonprofit College Promise campaign. A federal-state partnership “will create a sustainable endowment process that could fully fund this for all.”

In the meantime, Kanter, a former undersecretary of education in the Obama administration, said state leaders are upping their investment in postsecondary education.

Take New Mexico, where Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed into law Friday legislation that funds tuition for up to 35,000 residents to pursue certificates, associate’s and bachelor’s degrees this fall. The bill would create one of the most inclusive College Promise programs in the country by covering tuition for part-time students and adult learners returning to school.

“Signing this legislation sends a clear message to New Mexicans that we believe in them and the contributions they will make for their families and the future of our great state,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement Friday.

There is a sense of urgency among state leaders to reengage people who have stepped off the path to a credential since the pandemic, College Promise’s Kanter said. There is also a recognition that the cost of higher education can be prohibitive for many low- and middle-income families.

The University of Texas System Board of Regents acknowledged as much recently when members signed off Feb. 23 on Promise Plus, a new $300 million endowment to expand tuition coverage at seven of the eight UT schools (UT-Austin already has such a fund).

The universities currently cover tuition and fees for full-time undergraduates with family income under a certain threshold, which varies by institution. The board anticipates the new fund will generate $15 million a year and provide each campus with about $1 million to supplement their tuition plans.

“This is huge for getting kids into our institutions and across the finish lines and connecting learning to employability,” one of the regents, Nolan Perez, said during the Feb. 23 meeting.

Jabin Botsford / Washington Post In his first State of the Union address last week, the president urged Congress to invest in “America’s best-kept secret: community colleges.”