Healey's budget proposal would have a big impact on Bristol Community College. Here's how.
FALL RIVER — Gov. Maura Healey’s proposed state budget could bring big changes to Massachusetts’ community colleges, most notably by offering free community college to some students.
“We’re thrilled that Governor Healey recognizes the challenges that our students face as well as the challenges of our employers,” said Dr. Laura Douglas, president of Bristol Community College.
Like plenty of other schools, Bristol was hit hard by the pandemic, with many students putting their education on hold or dropping down from full-time classes to part-time.
Overall, the college lost about 3,000 students during the pandemic. Enrollment is typically around 8,000.
“We’ve been working very hard to bring those students back,” Douglas said.
Douglas said the budget would have three major, positive impacts on Bristol and other community colleges.
Free community college for adult students
On Wednesday, Healey filed her 2024 budget proposal for consideration by the state legislature. It includes $20 million to create a program called MassReconnect, which would pay community college tuition for state residents aged 25 or older who have not already earned a college degree or industry credential. The program would also cover other expenses like school fees, books and supplies.
A full year of classes at Bristol for a Massachusetts resident would usually cost around $7,500, including tuition and fees.
The average age of a Bristol student is 25, Douglas said. In total, about 40% of their students are adult students aged 25 or older.
Adult college students were hit especially hard by the pandemic's disruptions, Douglas said. Many students left school so they could work more hours to support themselves and their families or to care for their children with schools closed. The tuition help would go a long way toward reversing that trend.
“Free community college for adult learners will be just the thing to make them say, ‘OK, it’s time to come back. I want to finish what I started,” she said.
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More funding for early college
The proposed budget also includes $46.9 million for early college and career training through the Innovation Pathways program, a $14.4 million increase over the current fiscal year. Bristol Community College currently works with B.M.C. Durfee High School, New Bedford High School and Argosy Collegiate Charter School to provide early college, which involves students taking college classes and potentially earning an associate degree while still in high school.
The program has been billed as a way to encourage students who might not otherwise attend college earn credits for free by taking them as part of their public high school education.
Douglas said she’s happy to see the program receive more funding.
“They have the talent, yet they need the support, they need the access to college,” she said of early college students.
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Support for marginalized students
Healey’s budget proposal includes $18 million, $4 million than this year, for the Community College SUCCESS fund, a state grant program that helps community college pay for services to assist their most vulnerable students, such as low-income, first generation, minority, disabled and LGBT+ students.
At Bristol, this helps fund measures like “success coaches” who work directly with students to help keep them on track to graduate on time.
“We have a lot of students who are first in their family to go to college and this extra support means everything to get them over the finish line,” Douglas said.
This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Healey's free community college budget plan in favor at Bristol CC
