A sample of the InDesign assignment for COMM 231.

1. 2
A bill offering state aid for the first two
academic years of a community-technical
college is making its way through the
Connecticut legislative process.
In addition to the state aid for community-
technical students, the bill also states that
the Planning Commission for Higher
Education must develop a plan for a
scholarship program for full-time students
that will cover costs for the last two
semesters of a student’s associate degree
and the last four semesters of a student’s
bachelor’s degree.
House Bill 5371-An Act Establishing
the Free 2 Start Scholarship Program
was passed in the Higher Education and
Employment Advancement Committee in
the middle of March this year. Currently,
the bill has moved to the calendar of the
House of Representative and is awaiting
action from the House.
If the bill is approved, the $5 million
program will take effect in July of 2018.
Central Connecticut students say that they
hope this bill will pass to help students,
who can potentially transfer to CCSU, pay
for college.
“CCSU benefits from accepting transfer
students from community colleges across
the state,” Matthew Papapietro, CCSU
student, said. “Providing the opportunity
College students across the state of Connecticut could benefit from a new bill that would make the first two years
of college more affordable. Photo by Sharon McCutcheon.
‘Free 2 Start’ Scholarship
Program Could Offer Students
State Aid For College
By Cindy Pena

2. 3
to attend college to a wider range of
students could increase enrollment at
CCSU in the future.”
Kassandra “Kass” Fruin, president-elect
of the Student Government Association,
agreed.
“This type of assistance is needed for
students and families in Connecticut of
low income,” Fruin said. “I know others
can say the same, and especially students
who chose to attend community college
before a four-year institution to save more
money. I believe this act is a good step into
the right direction, and shows that there
are legislators in Connecticut who care
about higher education.”
Fruin and other members of the SGA
have advocated for policies similar to HB
5371 to help students in Central access
affordable higher education.
“I will always advocate for affordability. I
want to be the voice of students who did
not get the future they deserved because
they could not afford it,” Fruin said.
“Without an affordable education, children
and young adults like myself would not
have easier avenues to flourish within
today’s society.”
However, opponents of the bill argue that it
can have a negative effect on students and
other higher education institutions.
Jennifer Widness, president of the
Connecticut Conference of Independent
Colleges, stated in a public testimony
presented to the Higher Education and
Employment Advancement Committee
that this bill will limit students’ abilities
to choose between a public or private
institution and can decrease enrollment in
private colleges.
“Our state’s need-based aid program has
been cut by 50 percent over the last eight
years,” Widness stated. “Rather than
picking winners and losers, the state should
support access and choice to all sectors of
higher education institutions by investing
in the state’s need-based financial aid
program, which lags the national average
in both average grant and investment per
student enrolled. A robust student aid
program will incentivize Connecticut
students to stay and allow them access to
the institution that fits them best.”
Despite its success so far, the bill must be
passed in the House and Senate, and then
signed by the governor for the plan to be
implemented.
Photo by Faustin Tuyambaze.