Months after they proposed a scholarship program, the Hudson County Board of Freeholders finally released the details last week that will allow many people to attend Hudson County Community College for free.
The scholarships unveiled before the Dec. 10 Freeholder Caucus meeting would cover four consecutive semesters at the community college for students who are pursing an associate’s degree and meet the eligibility requirements.
This is designed to help students who might fall short of the necessary funds to be able to attend college otherwise, said Freeholder Chairman Sal Vega in a special presentation that included Hudson County College President Dr. Glen Gabert and Jersey City Superintendent of Schools Charles Epps.
"Many kids want to attend college, and though many qualify for financial aid, they may not have enough to be able to get through college," Vega said. "This could make the difference and close the gap for them."
Vega credited Freeholder and Union City Mayor Brian Stack with leading the effort to get the scholarship program established. The idea was generated during a freeholder meeting last year partly at the suggestion of Freeholder Bill O’Dea.
"This is a wonderful opportunity for a number of people who might not able to attend college otherwise," said Epps. "This gives people more options."
Vega called this a step towards providing equal educational opportunities for people in Hudson County, but said the county must be aggressive in letting people know about the program, through flyers to schools and advertisements throughout the county via public transportation and other means. Freeholder Maurice Fitzgibbons said public and private schools should be made aware of the program, and Stack said all students at all levels of high school should know about the program to be able to work toward it.
To qualify, a student must have a full-time enrollment state as the Hudson County Community College. This means 12 credits or more per semester. He or she must also have a high school grade point average of 2.7 or a B-minus. The person must also be a Hudson County resident according to existing HCCC residency policy. And the student must meet annual family income guidelines as established by the federal government.. Students applying for the Hudson County Scholarship Award program must also apply for federal and state financial aid, and the scholarship will cover the difference between HCCC cost of attendance and financial aid received.
Alerting all students
Stack, who has been critical of the slow development of the program and took college officials to task earlier this year when it failed to kick off in time for September admissions, asked college officials to look over records and offer the benefits of the program to students qualifying as of next September.
Stack also said he wanted better communications between the freeholders and the college in this regard, even though he will no longer be a freeholder (Stack will be sworn into the state Assembly in January and will resign his freeholder seat at that time).
Former Jersey City Deputy Mayor Bill Macchi was in the audience, and informed the freeholders that he would be working with the college to help develop the North Hudson Campus. He said he would be attending freeholder meetings and would handle many of the issues they might have regarding college activities.
Macchi predicted the North Hudson Campus will see significant admissions partly because of the easy access supplied to the new campus, but also because of the development of Roosevelt Stadium in Union City and the closeness of the new campus to the Bergenline shopping district in Union City and West New York.
Anthony Amabile, who is a public relations contractor for the freeholders, said brochures have been printed in both English and Spanish and sent to all the high schools in Hudson County. The number of brochures sent around was based on a survey of potentially eligible students and a two-year supply sent to each school.
Stack, however, said he wanted students in every grade of high school made aware of the program as an encouragement to keep up their grades.
"If a student knows there are free college courses available, then this will encourage [him or her] to do better," Stack said.
Because of the number of agreements between HCCC and four-year colleges around the state, this scholarship could cut in half the costs of a four-year degree. If a student takes the correct courses at HCCC, he or she can get credit for those courses at some four year institutions.
Students and parents can get applications for the program from their local high school guidance counselors or by calling the college’s office of financial aid at (201) 360-4200.