The University of Colorado Boulder greatly expanded its CU Promise program for low-income students this fall resulting in funding assistance becoming available for more than 700 additional students.
The CU Promise program guarantees that CU Boulder students with Colorado resident status from low-income families can receive enough grants and work-study employment to pay for their share of tuition, fees and estimated book expenses.
“We’re very pleased that the expansion of the CU Promise program is making it possible for hundreds of additional Colorado students to receive financial support,” said CU Boulder Chancellor Philip P. DiStefano. “These are deserving students who are now getting additional help toward their goal of obtaining a college education.”
Last January, CU Boulder joined more than 100 colleges at the White House College Opportunity Summit in making new commitments to increase college access and affordability. CU Boulder changed its definition of low-income to include any Colorado student who receives a Federal Pell Grant. As a result, more than 700 additional students are eligible to receive funding this year and will bring the total number of students in the program to almost 1,000.
Since the CU Promise program started in fall 2005, federal government poverty guidelines have been used to determine if a family is eligible for the program. The program typically has enrolled 300 to 350 students each year.
For the 2014-15 school year, total grant and work-study awards range from $12,590 to $17,170.
Students in the CU Promise program must be enrolled full-time (at least 12 credit hours per semester). They may receive CU Promise funding for up to 10 semesters as long as they continuously enroll full-time each semester, meet the university’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy each semester, qualify for a Federal Pell Grant every year, and apply and are awarded financial aid every year by the July 1 deadline.
Summer terms are not funded. However, CU Boulder has another program that awards sophomores who’ve fallen behind on credit hours and who show significant financial need $1,000 to $2,000 each for summer school courses so they can catch up and ultimately graduate on time.
More information on CU Promise can be found at http://www.colorado.edu/finaid/cupromise.html.
-CU-