The MATC Promise is geared for local high school seniors, who might not normally be able to afford college. The Promise opens up opportunities for students who wouldn’t necessarily have thought that they could go to college. Although the program promises help, it is not all free. There are some stipulations that must be reached before students can receive this scholarship.

Students must meet eligibility criteria, which includes earning a 2.0 grade-point average, being an on-time graduate, earning a composite ACT score of 16, and having a 90% attendance rate during the 2015-2016 academic year.

The program is open to students who live or graduated from our district, which covers all of Milwaukee County, the lower two-thirds of Ozaukee County, and small portions of Washington and Waukesha counties.

Students must also have an expected family contribution to their college education of $3,000 or lower, based on information recorded on the free application for financial aid.

Dr. Vicki Martin, president of MATC, developed the initiative and introduced the MATC Promise at a press conference on Sept. 9, explained, “In a nutshell, MATC will pay the last dollar or difference between a student’s federal and state financial aid and the cost of tuition and fees for eligible senior students, who graduate from high school in 2016 and enroll at MATC the next fall. This promise requires four consecutive semesters of full-time enrollment at MATC.”

She continued, “And the Promise is more than just free tuition and fees. While students are enrolled at MATC, students must maintain a 2.0 grade-point average and they must complete eight hours of engaged service learning projects each semester. They will be required to participate in academic success and career planning workshops and will be offered assistance with internships and job placement services.”

Martin decided to develop the MATC Promise after learning about a similar program in Tennessee. She said, “For years there has been a great deal of talk in and around Milwaukee, our state, and nation about the issues of poverty and the skills gap. I am a firm believer that education is the best solution to overcome poverty. MATC is uniquely positioned to provide the necessary education and training that can address the needs of our local business and industry. The Promise will open the doors for college education to area students who are in the greatest need of the education that we offer.”

Ninety-five percent of MATC graduates live and work in Wisconsin and contribute 1.7 billion dollars in added annual income to the local economy, according to Martin. Martin explained, “A study by the National Skills Coalition shows that 51% of future job openings in Wisconsin will be middle skilled jobs. Middle skill jobs require education beyond a high school diploma, but not a four-year degree. With more than 200 associate degrees, technical diplomas, certificates and apprenticeship offerings, MATC is the answer for middle skill job training and education. For students seeking to continue their education after earning an associate degree, we have more than 400 transfer agreements with four-year partners in Wisconsin and across the country.”

So far the announcement of the MATC Promise is peaking local high school students’ interest. According to Trevor Kubatzke, vice president of Student Services, “In the matter of three or four days we’ve had probably close to 100 inquiries. So for this time of year that’s unprecedented.” He continued, “Most high school seniors don’t really get enthused about this until spring, so people are listening and they’re hearing and they’re asking questions.”

Kubatzke thinks the program is fantastic and said that it makes the conversation easier for young people because they don’t have to worry about if they can afford college. Instead, students can ponder what they want to do in life and figure out how to get there.

According to Martin, “Milwaukee Area Technical College is stepping up to the challenges of our community by offering this special opportunity for more students to attend and succeed in college. The MATC Promise opens the door to a better future for thousands of high school seniors, and in turn, strengthens our entire community.”

Although the MATC Promise will help many students to attend college, it will not help current MATC students at this time.

Martin said, “Well, we’re hoping. We’ll see how this goes and we’re hoping to still raise scholarships for students who are here so that they can continue their education. But right now what we’re trying to do is we’re trying to get more students to come here.”

Kubatzke added, “We never say never, but you have to start somewhere. Because this is funded purely by our local foundation, no taxpayer dollars, no state revenue, this is pure donations, we do have to be thoughtful of how much money we have and what we can do. So at this time we aren’t looking at doing continuing students, but you never know.”