Vermont 2025-2026 Regular Session

Vermont House Bill H0297 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	BILL AS INTRODUCED H.297
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6	6	H.297 1
7	7	Introduced by Representatives Priestley of Bradford, Branagan of Georgia, 2
8	8	Burke of Brattleboro, Chapin of East Montpelier, Headrick of 3
9	9	Burlington, Howard of Rutland City, Marcotte of Coventry, 4
10	10	McCann of Montpelier, McGill of Bridport, Mrowicki of 5
11	11	Putney, Satcowitz of Randolph, Sweeney of Shelburne, and 6
12	12	White of Waitsfield 7
13	13	Referred to Committee on 8
14	14	Date: 9
15	15	Subject: Education; Community College of Vermont; scholarship 10
16	16	Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to create the 11
17	17	Free Degree Promise Grant Program to provide funding toward a free 12
18	18	associate’s degree through the Community College of Vermont (CCV) for 13
19	19	eligible individuals. 14
20	20	An act relating to the creation of the Free Degree Promise Grant Program 15
21	21	for the Community College of Vermont 16
22	22	It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 17
23	23	Sec. 1. FINDINGS 18
24	24	The General Assembly finds that: 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.297
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29	29	(1) According to the New England Secondary School Consortium, 1
30	30	Vermont’s high school graduates continue on to college at the lowest rates in 2
31	31	New England at 45 percent, with students with low income, Black students, 3
32	32	students with disabilities, and male students facing the deepest equity gaps in 4
33	33	continuation rates. 5
34	34	(2) Rapidly declining college aspirations among youth since 2020, as 6
35	35	revealed by survey data from the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation 7
36	36	(VSAC), signal that continuation rates will sink lower. 8
37	37	(3) College degrees, especially associate’s degrees, have enduring value. 9
38	38	Associate’s degree graduates in Vermont are the most likely in the country to 10
39	39	achieve a positive return on investment at 79 percent, according to Strada 11
40	40	Education Foundation. 12
41	41	(4) Free accelerated associate’s degree pathways are a high-leverage 13
42	42	opportunity to improve Vermont’s college continuation rates among students 14
43	43	furthest from opportunity. 15
44	44	(5) Vermont’s enabling conditions to improve college attainment 16
45	45	through accelerated associate’s degree pathways are strong due to the 17
46	46	following factors: 18
47	47	(A) Vermont has a single, statewide community college. The 19
48	48	Community College of Vermont (CCV) serves the greatest number of 20
49	49	Vermonters and of Vermonters with low income of any college in the State via 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.297
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54	54	12 locations and extensive learning options. Over 25 percent of CCV students 1
55	55	are high school students. 2
56	56	(B) With the enactment of 2013 Acts and Resolves No. 77, 3
57	57	Vermont’s flexible pathways bill, Vermont has a 10-plus year history of 4
58	58	offering flexible pathways to graduation that include a free year of full-time 5
59	59	college in lieu of a traditional 12th grade year. Historically, most participating 6
60	60	students enroll at CCV. 7
61	61	(i) Act 77 was established to develop and expand high-quality 8
62	62	secondary education experiences, to promote opportunities for postsecondary 9
63	63	readiness, and to increase high school completion and postsecondary 10
64	64	continuation. Act 77 offers Vermont students two free dual enrollment courses 11
65	65	plus the opportunity to enroll in Early College their senior year. 12
66	66	(ii) Early College in Vermont allows seniors to complete their last 13
67	67	year of high school and their first year of college at the same time, earning free 14
68	68	college credits that also count toward graduation from high school. 15
69	69	(C) Vermont has established cross-sector partnerships. The cross-16
70	70	sector Early College Equity Working Group has spent several years analyzing 17
71	71	data, building a shared vision, exploring promising practices, and addressing 18
72	72	barriers. In 2004, a cross-sector team from Vermont was invited to participate 19
73	73	in the national Accelerate ED community to build on this work. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.297
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78	78	(D) Recent public investments in college affordability. Facing a 1
79	79	shrinking workforce and an economy with two job openings for every 2
80	80	jobseeker, policymakers have committed to investing in talent, particularly 3
81	81	through CCV and with the 802 Opportunity Grant. 4
82	82	(E) Since 2022, the McClure Foundation’s Free Degree Promise has 5
83	83	built on Vermont’s Early College program at CCV to create a free, fast-tracked 6
84	84	associate’s degree pathway available to all Vermont youth in the high school 7
85	85	classes of 2023–2026. 8
86	86	(F) Two and a half years since its launch, emerging data shows the 9
87	87	Free Degree Promise is working to equitably scale accelerated degrees for 10
88	88	Vermont youth. Since the Promise was announced in spring 2022, CCV has 11
89	89	seen a 150 percent increase in enrollment of students with low income in the 12
90	90	State’s Early College program at CCV and triple the number of CCV’s Early 13
91	91	College program completers persisting near-full-time at CCV toward a degree. 14
92	92	Over half of the 2024–2025 Free Degree Promise student cohort are first-15
93	93	generation college students. 16
94	94	(G) CCV majors closely align with Vermont’s identified workforce 17
95	95	needs. 18 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.297
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100	100	Sec. 2. 16 V.S.A. § 2189 is added to read: 1
101	101	§ 2189. FREE DEGREE PROMISE GRANT PROGRAM 2
102	102	(a) Program creation. There is created the Free Degree Promise Grant 3
103	103	Program to provide funding toward a free associate’s degree through the 4
104	104	Community College of Vermont (CCV) for eligible individuals. 5
105	105	(b) Eligibility. CCV shall be responsible for verifying Program eligibility. 6
106	106	To be eligible for the Program, an individual shall satisfy each of the following 7
107	107	requirements: 8
108	108	(1) be enrolled at CCV on a full-time basis, which shall be a minimum 9
109	109	of 12 credits, in an approved undergraduate program of study leading to an 10
110	110	associate’s degree; 11
111	111	(2) have successfully completed the State’s Early College program, 12
112	112	established under section 946 of this title, at CCV, with a minimum of 20 13
113	113	successful credits in the academic year prior to receipt of the individual’s first 14
114	114	award under this Program; 15
115	115	(3) have not earned a prior associate’s degree or the equivalent; 16
116	116	(4) have completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or an 17
117	117	equivalent application for State-funded assistance; 18
118	118	(5) is not in default on any federal or state student loans for attendance 19
119	119	at any institution, or owe a refund for any previous state financial aid program; 20
120	120	and 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.297
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125	125	(6) meet satisfactory academic progress according to CCV’s 1
126	126	requirements. 2
127	127	(c) Program benefit. 3
128	128	(1) Free Degree Promise grants shall cover, after all other sources of 4
129	129	federal and State grant aid have been exhausted: 5
130	130	(A) any remaining tuition and fees due to CCV; and 6
131	131	(B) a stipend, per enrolled semester, for the cost of books, supplies, 7
132	132	and other expenses in the amount of: 8
133	133	(i) $1,000.00 for students whose household income is less than 9
134	134	400 percent of the federal poverty level per year; or 10
135	135	(ii) $500.00 for students whose household income is equal to or 11
136	136	greater than 400 percent of the federal poverty level per year. 12
137	137	(2) Eligible individuals may be awarded Free Degree Promise grants 13
138	138	and supports for a maximum of five semesters of full-time study, which shall 14
139	139	be a minimum of 12 enrolled credits per academic term, or until the individual 15
140	140	completes a degree program, whichever comes first. 16
141	141	(d) Disbursement of funds. CCV shall determine an individual’s eligibility 17
142	142	for the Program at the time of enrollment. Program funds shall be disbursed to 18
143	143	eligible individuals in the academic year in which funds are appropriated by 19
144	144	the General Assembly until funds are exhausted. Any funds remaining at the 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.297
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149	149	end of a fiscal year shall carry forward and shall be available to CCV in the 1
150	150	following fiscal year to award Program funds as set forth in this section. 2
151	151	(e) Administration, promotion, and evaluation. CCV shall adopt policies, 3
152	152	procedures, and guidelines necessary for implementation of the Program. Not 4
153	153	more than 12 percent of funds appropriated by the General Assembly for the 5
154	154	Program shall be used by CCV for student support services and the 6
155	155	administration and evaluation of the Program. 7
156	156	(f) Report. Annually on or before January 15, CCV shall report to the 8
157	157	General Assembly regarding implementation and administration of the 9
158	158	Program, including data regarding annual student enrollment in the Program, 10
159	159	dollar amounts spent and unspent, semester and degree completion 11
160	160	disaggregated by priority equity populations, and any recommendations for 12
161	161	legislative action regarding the Program. The provisions of 2 V.S.A. § 20(d) 13
162	162	(expiration of required reports) shall not apply to the required report to be 14
163	163	made under this subsection. 15
164	164	Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE 16
165	165	This act shall take effect on July 1, 2025. 17