Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer plans to urge state lawmakers to pass legislation that would provide free community college tuition for all high school graduates during her sixth State of the State speech on Wednesday.
Whitmer also prioritized community college access in her annual address last year. State lawmakers responded by temporarily lowering the minimum age for free tuition from 25 to 21 years old. The Democratic governor now wants to expand the program by removing all age requirements for free community college, according to details of her plan provided to The Associated Press by Whitmer’s office.
Whitmer’s administration created the Michigan Reconnect program in 2021, aiming to increase the percentage of the state’s workforce with a postsecondary degree or training from 50.5% to 60% by 2030. It made Michigan residents 25 years and older eligible for free community college tuition.
School course books are more expensive then community college fee.
As a resident in Michigan, this is good news but definitely not something we need to focus on at this point in time.
The state government needs to focus on the basics and by that I mean clean water. Flint still has a water crisis and many cities like Brenton Harbor as well as northern Michigan towns face the same issues.
It is possible they can fix the water infrastructure and provide free community college since they do have a large budget surplus.
Because for some reason, in North America we determined that the best way to ensure that your population is educated and ready to be a powerhouse of innovation and productivity is to make the education required to achieve that as expensive and as out of reach as possible.
Oooo, I like this. Free Associates Degree and if you want to go on to get a Bachelor’s it now costs 50% less!
Stick it straight to the for-profit college system.
Free college and legal weed? Why do you have to be so cold, Michigan?
See also: Canada.
It won’t be cold for much longer with the way climate change is heading. I moved to Detroit a few years ago, and all my neighbors have commented on how little snow we’re getting and how warm winters have been.
You’re way further north than me (I’m in West-Central Indiana) and on the lake. It was -14 here last week. I can’t believe it was especially balmy there.
Eh, the heat waves and cold snaps are happening nationwide. I more mean that on average, it’s been pretty warm. Most of November and December was between 40F and 50F.
But for sure, the lake (and concrete from the city) helps keep temperatures moderate. We’re also lucky being on the west side of the lake, so we don’t have to deal with lake effect snow.
