San Mateo Daily Journal
By Sierra Lopez
Courses at San Mateo County’s three community colleges may soon become free for thousands of local students, reducing barriers to higher education for which district officials have long fought.
With Senate Bill 893 sitting on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk waiting for approval, trustees are now left to decide how they’ll implement the five-year pilot program — championed by state Sen. Josh Becker, D-San Mateo; Assembly Speaker pro Tem Kevin Mullin, D-South San Francisco; and Assemblyman Marc Berman, D-Palo Alto — that will permit them to waive their $46 per unit enrollment fees for more than 13,600 students who reside in San Mateo County starting this spring semester.
“Tuition is only a part of a very, very complex problem and we recognize that,” Trustee John Pimentel said during a meeting Wednesday. “All sorts of issues cause folks to not come to community college but this is one thing we can do, that we can control now, and make a big deal out of it.”
Daily Journal: Courses at San Mateo County’s three community colleges may soon become free for thousands of local students, reducing barriers to higher education for which district officials have long fought.