Free college tuition offered to 400 Southwest-Virginia Students.WYTHEVILLE, Va. (AP) -- High school seniors in two Southwest Virginia counties are about to get something unavailable to their counterparts across the state: free community college tuition The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. College tuition . The program would begin next fall for about 400 members of the class of 2007 in Wythe and Bland counties who attend Wytheville Community College Wytheville Community College is a two-year college located in Wytheville, Virginia. One of the 23 schools in the Virginia Community College System, the college opened in 1963, and serves residents of Bland, Carroll, Grayson, parts of Smyth, and Wythe counties, and the City of Galax. . The Wythe-Bland Community Foundation's offer of free tuition would be the first in the state, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a Virginia Community College System The Virginia Community College System oversees a network of 23 community colleges in Virginia, which serve residents of Virginia and provide 2-year degrees and various specialty training and certifications. spokeswoman. "To me, it's the most exciting thing that's happened to this community in higher education since they put the community college here" in 1963, said college President Charlie White. Students who attend school in Wythe and Bland counties for at least their junior and senior years of high school would be eligible for five semesters of free tuition at the Wytheville college with grants from the foundation. Private-school graduates and home-schooled students could be eligible under certain conditions. Tuition for full-time students at the college is about $1,250 a semester. To qualify, students must show that they are ineligible for other aid to cover their tuition, according to a college official. The only requirements for students are that they perform 40 hours of community service and maintain at least a 2.0 grade-point average. The foundation sees the program as an investment in the community, Executive Director Gall S. Catron said. "We want to look back in 20 or 30 years and see what a difference that education would make in a community," she said. The foundation, which has $50 million in capital, focuses on health care needs. The Wytheville college was chosen in part because it offers a number of programs in health services health services Managed care The benefits covered under a health contract . The college currently "has the equivalent of "about 1,450 students, and White said he's preparing for an increase. The nearly 30 seniors at Rocky Gap High School in Bland County have already been to an open house at the community college to learn about the school and the tuition offer. "I've had many people who have expressed an interest in it," said Principal Robbie More-head. "I think it's a great opportunity for the kids to be able to expand their horizons once they've graduated." |
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