Bronx college is providing free tuition and supplies to students
Attending college may not be an easy financial decision for some high school seniors, but staff behind a new program at the University of Mount Saint Vincent are hoping to make the decision college a little easier by offering free tuition, transportation and various school supplies.
"It's a program that is designed to be holistic, supportive of students who have high financial need and need additional academic resource support," said Susan Burns, the president of the University of Mount Saint Vincent.
How the program works
The new program is called Seton College, which is a commuter based, two-year associate degree college on the campus of the University of Mount Saint Vincent.
Jason Ford, the dean of Seton College, said they are looking to further the education of students within the Bronx and neighboring areas.
"We focus primarily on our neighborhood, which is the Bronx. The reason we look at the Bronx, there's a whole variety of economic and educational disparity that students encounter. So we want to help to educate people within our community," Ford said.
Ford shared Seton college has roughly 65 students enrolled, some of whom are first-generation college students.
Students enjoy the smaller class size
Current students Juan Perez and Yeilin Figuereo spoke about what separates Seton College from their past learning experiences.
"So in high school, I think I had about 20 to maybe 25 kids a class. Now it's about 12. I do like it more because I feel like I get more of a gist of the lesson, and more help from the teacher. And if I do need help, the teachers are always there," Perez said.
"I knew I had potential in high school, but I didn't fully reach that. And coming to college I was a little bit scared knowing that, you know, colleges are big. But I'm actually an honor student now here for my first year. And I'm so proud of myself. And I think the faculty just helped me and the staff and my professors since they are here to help us and, you know, make us reach our full potential," Figuereo added.
Options that come with a degree from Seton College
Seton College administrators said students also receive bus passes and shuttle services to and from campus and more, all included in the free tuition.
"When they're on campus, they have breakfast and lunch provided to them at no cost. We provide them with technology, with books, and they're also able to complete their education without taking loans, because tuition is set at what they get for state and federal aid," Burns explained.
As students complete their degrees they can transfer to the University of Mount Saint Vincent to complete their four-year degree or head straight into the workforce with professional certificates.
"We're allowing students to take some of the prerequisite coursework that they would need for, like a nursing program for psychology or sociology, for business. We also have opportunities for our students to get, certified as phlebotomist to do real estate licensing, to do, a whole host of, professional credentialing," Ford said.
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