ESCANABA, Mich. (WZMQ) – In Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s State of the State Address in January, she called for two years of tuition-free community college for high school graduates.
When Bay College President Dr. Nerita Hughes heard Whitmer’s goals for Michigan community colleges, her initial reaction was one of excitement.
“I think this is an awesome opportunity for us to provide free college tuition and educational opportunities,” Dr. Hughes said. “Specifically, when I look at my own institution, over 50% of our students are Pell eligible, which really gets into the low income. Being able to not have a barrier for educational attainment was something that I really gravitated to when I heard that.”
In addition to promoting the governor’s Sixty by 30 initiative, Dr. Hughes believes the proposal will also further Bay College’s goal of strengthening the local workforce.
“This will be a direct tie-in for people to be able to obtain an associate’s degree or some type of educational credential and then move on to work,” she said. “When you’re looking at those high-growth, in-demand, high-wage jobs, this is a great alignment for this opportunity.”
The proposal does come with “what ifs” regarding funding and implementation. However, based on Whitmer’s budget presentation on February 7, Dr. Hughes feels reassured.
“Part of our revenue comes from our state appropriations, our tuition and fees, and the property taxes,” she explained. “We know that what was just proposed is an increase. Hearing that there will be ongoing support lowers the anxiety level just a little bit to know that we will still have support of how we would be able to still provide operations for our institutions.”
Dr. Hughes says Bay College is looking forward to maximizing current programs and embracing new ways of making education more accessible for all students.
“MI Guarantee, Reconnect, those are programs that we are definitely seeing our students take advantage of,” said Dr. Hughes. “As long as we can continue that, and the quicker we can get them through those programs, then the faster we can actually close that workforce gap that we know exists today.”
Click here for more on Governor Whitmer’s 2024 State of the State Address.
