Students attending college within the University of Texas System will receive free tuition and waived fees if their families make less than $100,000 annually. The initiative was approved by the Board of Regents on Thursday and will go into effect next fall.
"In a career in higher education, this is certainly one of the highlights," UT System Chancellor James B. Milliken said. "There's a real sense that this has a significant impact on Texas families and the ability of students to be able to attend one of our institutions and get a high-quality education."
The UT System is the first in Texas to offer this large of a financial aid package as part of its Promise Plus Program, a need-based financial aid program that aims to help students facing economic challenges attend university. The board previously voted to give free tuition to undergraduate students whose families’ adjusted gross income totaled $65,000 or under.
“The Regents are not only addressing immediate needs of our current students, but they are taking the long view, ensuring that future generations will continue to benefit from this remarkable program,” Milliken said in an announcement on Wednesday before the full vote.
“Across UT institutions, enrollment is growing, and student debt is declining, indicating success in both access and affordability. That’s a rare trend in American higher education, and I’m proud the UT System is in a position to be a leader.”
The program's expansion is a $35 million investment that will go directly to campuses to pay for the initiative. The investment comes from endowment distributions, the Available University Fund and other resources, according to the press release.
The UT System enrolls over a quarter of a million students, making it one of the largest public university systems in the country.
The initiative applies to students attending any of the system’s nine academic institutions, including UT Austin, UT Dallas and Stephen F. Austin State University. For the 2024 academic year, UT Austin estimated tuition to range between $10,858-$13,576 for in-state and $40,582-$48,712 for out-of-state students, according to the UT website. In-state students typically spend more money on housing and transportation than tuition.
Last week, Gov. Greg Abbott said he would not support tuition increases at public colleges and universities in the next two years.
In addition to reducing tuition costs, the board said this will help reduce student debt for those within the UT System. Kevin P. Eltife, chairman of the Board of Regents, said the system cares about minimizing debt and increasing overall affordability for students.
"By making both immediate campus allocations as we did today, as well as continued long-term investments in our Promise Plus endowments, we want hard-working Texas families and students to know that we will do everything in our power to support their higher education aspirations today and always,” Eltife said in the announcement.
