Detroit Mayor Announces Free College Program

Liz Gullett

Mar 25, 2016

This week, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced that begin today, every Detroit high school graduate will be guaranteed two years of tuition-free college education. Under state law, an authority can create a promise zone in order to use a portion of a city’s state education taxes to provide two-years of college tuition to residents. The Detroit Promise Zone was created last fall by the Mayor and Detroit City Council in order to expand the program throughout the City of Detroit and provide a steady funding stream moving forward. “Promise Zones having proven to be successful throughout the state. It’s a great opportunity for high school graduates to attend one of Michigan’s top-notch community colleges and either obtain their associate’s degree or obtain two-years’ worth of credits to transfer to a four-year university. It sets students up for future success by building a strong foundation gained through education, all for free to the student,” stated Brendan Ringlever of MLC.

In 2013, the Detroit Regional Chamber and the Michigan Education Excellence Foundation created the Detroit Scholarship fund, which will continue to fund scholarships for the next three years until the Detroit Promise Zone tax capture is permitted in 2018. To be eligible, students must live in Detroit and have spent their junior and senior years at a high school in the city. The students must attend one of the five community colleges within metro Detroit.

For more information, please visit www.detroitscholarshipfund.org.

Michigan Legislative Consultants is a bipartisan lobbying firm based in Lansing, Michigan. Our team of lobbyists and procurement specialists provide a wide range of services for some of the most respected companies in America. For more on MLC, visit www.mlcmi.com or connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter.