Page 19 - BusinessWest April 3, 2023
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A Potential Game Changer
Proposals for ‘Free’ Community College May Have Broad Impact
BY GEORGE O’BRIEN
[email protected]
John Cook says that, while the cost of a com- munity-college education (roughly $7,000 per year) isn’t high, at least when compared with that of a four-year institution, public or pri- vate, it can be, and often is, a barrier that some cannot overcome, even with financial aid.
And for others, it’s enough of an obstacle for them to think twice about college — or not at all.
“Like anything in our lives, we can’t just separate this cost or isolate it from all the other considerations for a human being; it’s one more thing, one more cost in the lives of so many ... this is why we see students drop out, or say ‘now is not the time,’” said Cook, president of Springfield Technical Community College (STCC). “Any way to get a whole lot of people, frankly, to take this second look is a good thing.”
With that, Cook added his voice to many oth- ers who are praising Gov. Maura Healey’s inclu- sion in the budget of something she calls Mass- Reconnect, which would fund free community- college certificates and degrees to the Common- wealth’s residents who are age 25 and older and have not yet earned a college degree.
According to some statistics released by the state, roughly 2 million residents would be eli-
gible for the program — individuals who have a high-school diploma but not a college degree — and perhaps 700,000 of these individuals already have some college credits.
MassReconnect, which is actually
one of two ‘free’ community-college
programs that have been proposed
(Senate President Karen Spilka has
proposed free community college
for all students), would provide both
incentive and the means for many
people to return to college and get the
degree or certificate that might open
a door to not just a job, but a career,
said Christina Royal, president of Holyoke Com- munity College (HCC).
“This is a potential game changer,” she told BusinessWest, adding that MassReconnect tar- gets what she called the “emerging space of adult learners,” individuals who want a college educa- tion, but are held back by competing demands on their life, including family and work.
“The governor’s MassReconnect proposal is a great starting point that increases access for adult learners who don’t already have a college
“This is a group of adults, many of whom have col- lege credits, that we really want to encourage to come and take another look at college.”
  JOHN COOK
 BusinessWest
<< EDUCATION >>
APRIL 3, 2023 19
credential,” she went on. “It’s designed to help them finish that stretch so they can get a college credential.”
Michelle Schutt, president of Greenfield Com- munity College, concurred. She said GCC ran some numbers and determined that nearly 200 of the roughly 1,400 students currently enrolled would qualify for the program. “That’s not insig- nificant,” she said, adding that many more in the community who are not enrolled who might be inspired to connect, or ‘reconnect,’ as the case may be.





































































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