July 22, 2019 – Bloomberg’s Amanda Albright reported how New York’s free college tuition plan “tore a hole in the finances of Clarkson University”, an upstate New York private college founded in 1896, with an undergraduate enrollment of 3,000+ students.
Based on an interview with Clarkson University officials, Bloomberg reported that in the spring/summer of 2017, over 100 prospective freshmen opted to enroll in state colleges instead of Clarkson, right after the announcement by Governor Cuomo that his administration would push through free college tuition for state colleges.
Based on an estimated $49,000 tuition and fees each of those student would have paid annually, the revenue impact to Clarkson over a 4-year program amounted to over $20 million or over 10% of the university’s tuition revenues in 2017 based on audited financials.
Anthony Collins, president of the university, said:
“The timing was really tough. For four years, it creates a financial strain.”
Through a program called the Excelsior Scholarship, New York State officials believes over 940,000 families making up to $125,000 a year will quality for free college tuition at both State university (SUNY) and City university (CUNY) systems.
The actual uptake will be much lower. Based on public disclosure by the Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC), the FY2020 Executive Budget allocated $119 million for the Excelsior program, which together with other sources of funds, would support free college tuition for an estimated 30,000 students.
New York has over 400,000 college students, roughly half of whom are in-state residents, the vast majority of which will now enjoy free tuition.
Higher-Ed consultants consider the eligibility requirements for the program as reasonable, with only a one-year prior residency requirement. The program is also opened to undocumented immigrants, provided the student attends a state high school for two years or more. The scholarship has a value of up to $5,500 a year.
Recipients of the Excelsior Scholarship will be required to execute a contract to reside and work in New York state for the length of time the award was received.
Read the Bloomberg article (may require subscription).
Learn more about New York State’s Excelsior Scholarship program.
Contact Kyle Skinner at KSkinner@BuyMuni.com
