New Mexico will offer free college tuition to all residents

New Mexico announces the state will pay four years of tuition for all state residents, even those who can financially afford it. This applies to its public colleges and universities but does not cover living expenses. The tuition program will be open to all residents, regardless of immigration status. 

The initiative was announced on Wednesday by New Mexico governor Michelle Lujan Grisham at the New Mexico Higher Education Summit in Albuquerque. The program still requires legislature approval and out of the twenty states that have announced free tuition, people believe this to be the best one yet. This program will only cost the state $25 to $35 million per year and will benefit around 55,000 students. New Mexico Opportunity scholarship is the official name of the program. The way it works is after receive the maximum from state and federal aid, money from the program is then used.  

Studies have actually shown that college graduates in New Mexico have some of the lowest debt in the country. New Mexico has one of the highest poverty rates in the West as well as a high unemployment rate.