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Vermont State Colleges asks lawmakers to fund Freedom and Unity scholarships, new HVAC apprenticeship
Summary
Vermont State Colleges officials urged the Senate committee to back a proposed Freedom and Unity last-dollar tuition grant for students with family incomes up to $75,000 and requested start-up support for an HVAC apprenticeship, saying the measures would boost enrollment, retention and the state workforce.
Beth Mauck, chancellor of the Vermont State Colleges System, and Sharon Scott, the system’s chief financial and operating officer, told the Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs that expanded scholarship and apprenticeship funding would help retain students and meet Vermont employer demand.
Mauck said the system was created “for the benefit of Vermont” and framed the Freedom and Unity proposal as a tool to keep more Vermonters enrolled through to graduation. “This is so important, that it's not really only about the recruitment of students in programs. It really is about retaining them to graduation,” she said.
The Freedom and Unity grant would provide last-dollar tuition up to Vermont State University’s base tuition for individuals with family incomes at or below $75,000. Mauck told the committee that the House included $1,500,000 for the initiative…
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