Central Mass. state universities split $4.2 million to increase graduation rates within marginalized communities
Photo | Grant Welker
Worcester State University
Three Central Massachusetts universities have been awarded a share of $14 million in state funding to boost graduation rates for historically underserved students.
Funding for the grants is provided through Massachusetts’ SUCCESS program which finances support services for vulnerable and systemically marginalized communities including students of color, students with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ students, according to a joint Friday press release from the Office of Gov. Maura Healey and the Executive Office of Education.
The SUCCESS program addresses graduation rate concerns throughout Massachusetts, a state in which more than 30% of state university students do not complete their degrees within six years, according to data provided by the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. Graduation rates are particularly low among Black and Latino students, 40% of whom did not graduate within six years of enrollment.
Split amongst nine state universities, the grant amounts were partially determined by enrollment numbers and the number of Pell Grant-eligible state university students.
The three Worcester County state universities receiving SUCCESS grants are below:
- Fitchburg State University received $1.3 million
- Framingham State University received $1.32 million
- Worcester State University received $1.62 million
Previously only available to Massachusetts community colleges, the SUCCESS program’s reach has expanded to state universities for the first time in the Healey administration’s fiscal year 2025. Between fall 2022 to fall 2023, community college student retention rate increased 10 percentage points, a change the administration attributes in part to the program’s funding.
“To best support our students, we know that we need to help them get both to and through college,” Healey said in the release. “We’ve made progress in making it more affordable for students to enroll in college, and this program will now lift barriers that arise on the way to graduation, especially for first-generation college students who cannot draw on a parent’s experience to navigate earning a degree.”
Mica Kanner-Mascolo is a staff writer at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the healthcare and diversity, equity, and inclusion industries.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments