College tuition for students in low-income Michigan school districts could become significantly more affordable through a program signed in to law Tuesday.
The law, approved Tuesday by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, will allow for the creation of up to 10 “Promise Zones,” where communities can pay for college-bound students’ tuition through private donations, as well as funds equivalent to half of all increases in state education taxes paid by the community each year.
Promise Zones will be available for cities with high poverty rates and lagging college attendance. Communities that have expressed interest in creating a Promise Zone include Detroit, Flint, Muskegon, Pontiac and Saginaw, said State Rep. Tim Melton, D-Auburn Hills, who sponsored the bill.
Students currently enrolled in Michigan colleges and universities are not eligible for the tuition support.
Each community that establishes a Promise Zone must, at minimum, have funding available for high school graduates equivalent to the tuition cost of an associate’s degree in Michigan. The Michigan Treasury Department will review and rule whether to grant all Promise Zone applications.
The Promise Zone system was inspired by the Kalamazoo Promise, a program that has successfully paid full college tuition for Kalamazoo School District students since summer 2006. The Kalamazoo Promise is privately funded by anonymous donors and will pay out an estimated $5 to 6 million in tuition this year for about 850 students, said Bob Jorth, the program’s executive administrator.
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