{"id":144750,"date":"2023-10-04T09:30:52","date_gmt":"2023-10-04T13:30:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.nmc.edu\/?p=144750"},"modified":"2023-11-18T22:37:20","modified_gmt":"2023-11-19T03:37:20","slug":"success-story-younger-adults-now-eligible-as-state-seeks-a-better-educated-workforce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.nmc.edu\/?p=144750","title":{"rendered":"Success Story: Younger adults now eligible as state seeks a better-educated workforce"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3>October 4, 2023<\/h3>\n<p class=\"Caption\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"NMC CIT student David Hipolito and Culinary student Hannah Ramsby\" class=\"\" height=\"333\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nmc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/fad3668b0a0a00b80308b7ae073b1e37mi-reconnect-expands-success-story-2.jpg\" width=\"1000\" \/>Reconnect students David Hipolito, Computer Information Technology, and Hannah Ramsby, Culinary<\/p>\n<p>This week, Michiganders ages 21&#8211;24 who don&#8217;t already have a college degree got a limited time opportunity to increase their lifetime earning power at potentially no cost to them.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Michigan Reconnect logo\" class=\"AlignImageRight\" height=\"109\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.nmc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/337414d20a0a00b876ae0be9d0221a19MI-Reconnect-Logo-608x220-3.png\" width=\"304\" \/>For just over a year, Michigan Reconnect, which began offering free in-district tuition to adults 25 and older without a degree in 2021, is being extended to 21- to 24-year-olds. The only other eligibility requirements are a minimum of one year&#8217;s residency in Michigan, and a high school diploma or equivalent. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/reconnect\/community-college\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"(link opens new window)\">application deadline<\/a> is Nov. 15, 2024 and students must start classes by the fall 2024 semester.<\/p>\n<p>NMC estimates between 400&#8211;450 current students will be eligible, and the expansion could also draw in new students.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;NMC is so excited that the opportunity Michigan Reconnect presents is now available to younger adults,&#8221; said NMC President Nick Nissley. &#8220;We know from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/careeroutlook\/2023\/data-on-display\/education-pays.htm\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"(link opens new window)\">decades of data<\/a> that education beyond high school is the surest way people can improve their future incomes. Michigan Reconnect now makes that education much more affordable for many more people.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/traverseconnect.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/2021-Grand-Traverse-Region-Skills-Gap-Study.pdf\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"(link opens new window)\">2021 study<\/a> by Traverse Connect, the region&#8217;s economic development agency, showed that the largest chunk of northwest Michigan&#8217;s jobs, 43 percent, require more than a high school diploma but less than a bachelor&#8217;s degree. 2021 Georgetown University research shows that over an earning lifetime, associate degree graduates earn an average of <a href=\"https:\/\/cew.georgetown.edu\/cew-reports\/collegepayoff2021\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"(link opens new window)\">$400,000 more<\/a> than high school or GED graduates.<\/p>\n<p>At NMC, Grand Traverse County residents are considered in-district. Those who live elsewhere still receive significant discounts, paying only the difference between the in district and out of district rates. Other aid can also offset some of those costs.<\/p>\n<p>This fall, NMC saw a 20 percent jump in Reconnector enrollment by the original 25+ population. Some 278 students are receiving the Reconnect scholarship, with an average award of $1,561. Nearly 80 percent of those students have tuition and fees covered in full between Reconnect and Pell grants.<\/p>\n<p>Students have used Reconnect to enroll in virtually all of NMC&#8217;s 60 programs.<\/p>\n<p>David Hipolito, 25, is enrolled in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nmc.edu\/programs\/academic-programs\/computer-studies\/index.html\">Computer Information Technology<\/a>. Many of the courses he takes in the CIT program are online and he appreciates that format because it allows him to balance school and a full-time job. Hipolito also endorses NMC&#8217;s instructors, substantial student support services, and campus vibe. &#8220;NMC is a small community; you feel like you&#8217;re at home,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Hannah Ramsby, 28, is enrolled in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nmc.edu\/programs\/academic-programs\/culinary-arts\/index.html\">Culinary Arts<\/a>. Reconnect is a huge relief because it means she doesn&#8217;t have to take out loans. She encourages others to take advantage of it: &#8220;I often struggle asking for help. The money is there to help. I love that it is helping those who may think that they&#8217;re too old to go to school or don&#8217;t deserve it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The Reconnect expansion to 21&#8211;24 is funded by a $70 million appropriation from the Michigan Legislature.<\/p>\n<p>In 2019, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer established Michigan&#8217;s 60 by 30 goal of having 60 percent of adults have a college degree or skills certificate by 2030. It&#8217;s now 50.5 percent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>October 4, 2023 Reconnect students David Hipolito, Computer Information Technology, and Hannah Ramsby, Culinary This week, Michiganders ages 21&#8211;24 who don&#8217;t already have a college degree got a limited time opportunity to increase their lifetime earning power at potentially no cost to them. For just over a year, Michigan Reconnect, which began offering free in-district [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[68,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-144750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-intercom","category-student-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Success Story: Younger adults now eligible as state seeks a better-educated workforce - NMC Communiqu\u00e9<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nmc.edu\/?p=144750\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Success Story: Younger adults now eligible as state seeks a better-educated workforce - NMC Communiqu\u00e9\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"October 4, 2023 Reconnect students David Hipolito, Computer Information Technology, and Hannah Ramsby, Culinary This week, Michiganders ages 21&#8211;24 who don&#8217;t already have a college degree got a limited time opportunity to increase their lifetime earning power at potentially no cost to them. 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