The State Senate is expected to approve the next year’s fiscal budget on Sunday, and with it, a bill that would make college tuition free at 2- and 4-year public colleges for middle class families.<\/p>\n
Starting this fall, students will be eligible for the Excelsior Scholarship if their families earn less than $100,000 per year, that cap will bump up to $110,000 in 2018 and $125,000 in 2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope we do get free tuition because we really need it,” said Michaela Lawson, a freshman at the Fashion Institute of Technology. “Especially, you know, families here in New York. We, not a lot of us, make a lot of money so it would be really helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n
More than 940,000 families with college-age children across New York would qualify.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely think that I would fall into that category,” said Rachel Ahern, a junior at F.I.T.<\/p>\n
Louise Ahern, Rachel\u2019s mom, is paying for two\u00a0kids’ college tuitions at the same time.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re middle class, it\u2019s very hard,” she said. “I just went back to work after being home for a number of years, and that was for health insurance and to pay for two\u00a0colleges.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eligible students must be enrolled full-time and average 30 credits per year to get funding. You must maintain a passing grade point average.<\/p>\n
Recipients must also stay in-state after college for the same number of years that they got free tuition. Otherwise, their scholarship would be converted into loans.<\/p>\n