LYNN — Gov. Maura Healey signed MassEducate, a program that will allow anyone without a bachelor’s degree to obtain an associate degree from a Massachusetts community college without having to pay tuition or fees, into law with the passage of the fiscal year 2025 state budget on July 29.
The program is an expansion of MassReconnect, a program that allows anyone 25 years or older without a degree to obtain one from one of the Commonwealth’s 15 community colleges.
The new program is an additional $93.5 million investment in the state’s higher-education system, according to a press release from Healey’s office.
“We’re going to have the opportunity to provide so much more access to students,” North Shore Community College President Dr. William Heineman said.
As with MassReconnect, the MassEducate program will also provide certain high-needs students with subsidies for books and supplies.
Students who complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid are eligible to enroll free of cost for the fall 2024 semester.
MassEducate is geared toward those younger than the age of 25 who have yet to obtain a degree, as well as those older than the age of 25 who have an associate degree.
Dr. Heineman said the college had been anticipating the expansion of the program and assembled a task force to study how its enrollment might change, how its staffing needs might increase, and how it might need to increase access to on-campus resources.
He added that the college saw a 10% increase in enrollment after the launch of MassReconnect and is preparing for a similar increase among students ages 18 to 25 with the launch of MassEducate.
Dr. Heineman said that as a result of the new program, he thinks more people seeking bachelor’s degrees will recognize the value of transferring from a community college to a four-year university.
“A lot of our degrees are aimed at putting people right into the profession they’re interested in, with just a degree,” he said. “There are a lot of good-paying jobs out there that don’t require a bachelor’s degree, which is another reason people should at least come and talk to us.”
He added that Massachusetts is in need of manufacturers, childhood educators, and entrepreneurs.
“These are all relevant jobs,” he said. “All of these programs are something people are going to be able to access for free with this new MassEducate initiative.”
As Massachusetts continues to invest in free higher education, he said he hopes that the salaries of higher-education professionals stay in the conversation.
“As we staff up for this, the free issue is a big one,” he said. “It may turn into something that we have to talk about to make sure we keep up with the growing enrollment.”
Jaidon Taing, a student at NSCC, said that he loves the school because of the quality of its professors and its welcoming environment.
He said he was happy to hear about the MassEducate program because the price of tuition is continuing to increase.
“It’s really helpful to people like my family, for many other families, and for any other students coming into NSCC,” Taing said.
Ashley Shepard, a student at NSCC, said she thinks the program is “awesome.”
She added that she took a few years off from high school before starting her engineering degree at NSCC.
“A lot of people come to community colleges because of expenses over four-year colleges or maybe they just don’t know what they want to do yet,” she said. “So to make that free is great.”
