re: New York on verge of tuition-free college for middle class.

quote:

---

New York will be the first state in the nation to make tuition free at both two- and four-year public colleges for residents who earn up to a specific income cap, which will be phased in over the first three years.

Starting this fall, students who attend a State University of New York or City University of New York school will be eligible for the Excelsior Scholarship if their families earn no more than $100,000 a year. The income cap will lift to $110,000 next year and will reach $125,000 in 2019.

Those eligible will pay nothing for tuition, which costs $6,470 annually at four-year schools and about $4,350 a year at community colleges. But they will still be on the hook for the cost of fees and room and board if they live on campus. Those other expenses can add up to $14,000 a year.

After they graduate, students who receive the scholarship must live and work in New York for the same number of years they received funding. If they leave the state, their scholarship will be converted into a loan. This requirement was not included in the governor's initial proposal, which he announced in January.

---

Interested in seeing the statistics of families making less than $100K in NY State who actually have kids going to university. It's probably not that large a number, all things considered.