Dear Commons Community,

Tennessee’s Gov. Bill Haslam, in his State of the State address, unveiled a plan to waive tuition for students at community colleges and technology centers.  As reported in The Tennessean:

“The Republican governor proposed setting aside $300 million from the Tennessee Education Lottery to fund an endowment that would cover all tuition and fees to two-year institutions for all graduating high school seniors. The plan also calls for reducing Hope scholarships for incoming students at four-year universities by $1,000 for the first two years.

Haslam said the program, which he called Tennessee Promise, would draw new students into the higher education system.

“We are committed to making a clear statement to families that education beyond high school is a priority in the state of Tennessee,” Haslam said. “Tennessee will be the only state in the country to offer our high school graduates two years of community college with no tuition or fees along with the support of dedicated mentors.”

Gov. Haslam has his priorities right.  Free college tuition is an idea that had a rich history in this country including here at CUNY.

Bravo!

Tony