Opinion

Two centuries ago, Massachusetts became home to the nation’s first public high school. Over the next 100 years, other states followed suit, making high school universal and compulsory in response to the needs of a labor market in transition.

While we now take for granted the idea that high school should be free and required for all, workforce needs have changed again. High school isn’t enough to ensure preparation for career readiness. Employers now need more college-educated workers, and workers need degrees or credentials to get good jobs. Today’s movement to make community college tuition free is a timely and smart response to the realities of the modern economy.

While Massachusetts has long been a leader in education, other states have leapfrogged its first-in-the-nation status by providing many of their residents with access to tuition-free college. MassEducate, the plan released on May 6 by State Senate leaders, aims to restore the state to its leading position and educate the next generation of workers.

For policymakers interested in boosting the skills of the workforce, improving educational equity, and helping state residents get the credentials they need to access good jobs, there’s a lot to like about this proposal.

MassEducate includes three key elements that research shows boost the success of tuition-free college programs:

First, a universal community college guarantee addresses both the cost and the complexity of paying for college. Under MassEducate, the state’s community colleges would become tuition-free for all future high-school graduates. The program would build on Mass Reconnect (for adults without degrees) and the Community College Nursing Scholarship to broaden the pipeline toward a two-year degree or credential.

A universal guarantee helps people afford college, but just as important, it simplifies messaging. Figuring out how much college will cost can be exceedingly difficult. One benefit of a program like MassEducate is that high school students (and their families) will know that community college is tuition free for all graduates: that’s a clear, straightforward message that fits on a postcard or a billboard and lends itself to an easy application process. Research shows that simplicity in Promise program design helps maximize understanding and uptake.

Second, the proposal includes a stipend for students from low- and middle-income families. Students from households earning up to 125 percent of the state median income ($182,000 for a family of four) would receive $1,200 each year. Lower-income students eligible for Pell Grants would receive an additional $1,200 from existing state need-based aid. Students can use these funds toward the cost of living while they are in college. Even relatively modest stipends may help students cope with unexpected costs and reduce dropout rates.

Third, MassEducate would deliver a substantial 30 percent increase in funding for essential “wraparound” services at community colleges through the state’s SUCCESS program. Many students who are introduced to higher education through free-tuition programs need intensive advising to help them overcome barriers, from figuring out which courses to take to building their time management skills to connecting with the right tutoring resources on campus. Research shows that wraparound support increases the number of students who complete their program – improving the state’s return on its investment in tuition-free college.

With this plan, Massachusetts would join 25 other states that provide some form of tuition guarantee to a large segment of their population. These statewide Promise programs vary in how they function and the scale of benefits they provide.

At one end of the spectrum, New Mexico, flush with oil revenue, has created the most expansive plan – tuition for all residents is covered at any public, in-state institution before other grant aid is considered – and has been rewarded with rising levels of post-secondary enrollment. At the other end, some states have launched narrower programs with tight eligibility restrictions that have had little impact.

A free community college program like MassEducate falls into the sweet spot between these extremes. It creates a universally available pathway to a degree or credential while effectively targeting resources toward low- and middle-income individuals who make up most of the community college student body.

In this regard, it follows the most widely replicated state model: the Tennessee Promise, which covers tuition for all high-school graduates at in-state, two-year public institutions. Tennessee’s free-college programs have led to a jump in enrollment and an uptick in overall educational attainment levels, without any lasting harm to the public, four-year sector. In the past decade, nine other states have emulated this approach, including Massachusetts’ neighbor Rhode Island.

While there is plenty to like about the MassEducate proposal, it’s not enough on its own. Successful state Promise programs are buttressed by additional resources that help students transition from high school to college, and from college to the workforce.

To get the maximum benefit from a tuition-free college program, policymakers should also consider investing in a comprehensive approach to college advising at the high school level. Community colleges, in turn, should prioritize helping students get real-world work experience through internships or industry-specific pathways programs that speak to local labor market needs. Many community colleges already do this, although greater sharing of best practices across the state would be welcome.

For Massachusetts, a tuition-free path to a two-year degree or credential would support the state’s low- and middle-income residents, make higher education more accessible, improve skills in the workforce, and increase equity in college access. It is a crucial step in making the state a leader – once again – in responding to the educational needs of the modern economy.

Dr. Michelle Miller-Adams is a senior researcher at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, a co-director of the institute’s Policies for Place initiative, and the author of three books on the free-college Promise movement.