CINCINNATI — The University of Cincinnati is now offering a new affordability grant that eliminates tuition costs for thousands of students from low and middle-income families.
The Bearcat Affordability Grant covers full tuition for Ohio families earning under $75,000 annually who qualify for Pell Grants. UC leaders say the program addresses a critical barrier that prevented some of the region's brightest students from pursuing higher education.
"We started looking at opportunities around the region. We started seeing so many students who weren't able to afford college, not just not able to afford the University of Cincinnati, but not able to afford college anywhere," said Jack Miner, vice provost of enrollment. "And these were really qualified students, literally some of the smartest students in our state, some of the smartest students in our region, who just could not afford to go to college, and we felt like that was something that we were able to address."
The grant is expected to have effects beyond just covering tuition costs. UC officials said they predict it will encourage more students to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which could unlock additional need-based financial assistance.
Miner said the university has grown by about 9,000 students in the last eight or nine years. He said the reason they've grown is because of two main goals.
The first goal, Miner said, was to change the opportunity for people in the region to be able to work while pursuing their dreams. The second goal was to have an educated group of workers in the Cincinnati area.
WATCH: College tuition drops to zero for some Ohio families with new UC grant
The program provides enhanced support for Cincinnati Public School students already participating in the Strong Initiative while also expanding opportunities to students from other districts. Reading City Schools officials estimate that about 50% of their students would benefit from the grant.
Dr. Damon Davis, superintendent of Reading Community City Schools, said there are two main important factors.
"One, creating more opportunities for students so they can have access to higher education that's affordable because it's so expensive," Davis said. "The other is just being mindful always of how are we helping our families save money?"
Davis said that because of the CCP programming at Reading Community Schools, which is already affiliated with UC, families saved over $350,000 in tuition money last year.
The grant is funded completely by the University of Cincinnati and is specifically designed for new first-time freshmen. According to university officials, UC saw a 15% increase last year, with more than 35,000 applications for admission last fall.
"It is for new first-time freshmen, so realistically, if you're an adult, this is absolutely the grant for you," Miner said.
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Davis told us he believes the program will fundamentally change how families view college affordability in the region.
"More and more families are going to be thinking about maybe this is affordable for us, and we can go another pathway we didn't think was possible," Davis said.
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