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Black History Month
February 17, 2016
A deadline is approaching for local students to apply for free tuition
at community colleges as part of the irst ‘Oregon Promise’ grant.
Free Community
College Opens Doors
Deadline nears
for ‘Oregon
Promise’ grants
e riC t egethoff
High school seniors have less
than a month to apply for the irst
“Oregon Promise,” a state grant
covering tuition for communi-
ty colleges, trade and technical
schools.
Students must have a grade
point average of 2.5 or higher or
have passed the GED within six
months of applying for college, no
matter their immigration status.
Jennifer Satalino, director of
The College Place Oregon, which
provides students applying to col-
lege with inancial advice, said
this is a major door-opener.
“We’re kind of hoping this is
a ‘rising tide loats all boats’ sit-
uation,” she said. “We really want
to encourage with this program
-- with this Oregon Promise --
that idea that college is there, and
there’s a way to pay for it.”
There is $10 million set aside
for the program. It’s estimated that
from 4,000 to 6,000 students will
receive grant money.
The Oregon Promise has some
by
caveats. Students also must apply
for federal or state aid and accept
any funds offered to them. The
grant then will cover any leftover
costs. Undocumented students
who have lived in the state for
three years are eligible to apply as
well. These students can’t apply
for federal aid, and Satalino said
the Oregon Promise lifts an enor-
mous burden from their shoulders.
“The idea that none of our stu-
dents have to worry about the irst
two years of college is absolute-
ly amazing,” she said. “It’s more
than a light at the end of a tunnel.”
Oregon is the irst state to fol-
low Tennessee, which saw a 10
percent increase in college enroll-
ment last year. Like recipients in
Tennessee, Bob Brew, executive
director of the Ofice of Student
Access and Completion, said stu-
dents don’t have to use the grant
for the traditional community-col-
lege route.
“The money can be applied to-
ward the tuition cost of any cred-
it-baring class or career technical
education class,” he said.
Students can apply at oregon-
promise.org. That website also
has a link to federal- and state-aid
applications.
--Oregon News Service
Black History Month Tours
For Black History Month, the
“Hidden History of Albina” serves
a primer to the controversial de-
bate about whether gentriication
and displacement are good or bad
for the community.
The tour highlights the vast cul-
tural transformation of the region,
beginning at Little Big Burger,
and hearing from speakers at the
Sons of Haiti Lodge, the North
Northeast Business Association,
the Urban League of Portland, and
the Northeast Coalition of Neigh-
borhoods.
“As a native black Portlander I
see the issues we face,” said Urban
League organizer and tour speak-
er Llondyn Elliot. “These are
very different than the struggles
of white natives, and drastically
different from transplants. I think
it’s important for both groups to
know and understanding what has
happened for both awareness and
so they are not repeating history
again.”
Upcoming tour dates are Sat-
urday, Feb. 27 and Friday, March
4. For more information, contact
Know Your City executive Cam-
eron Whitten at 503-890-5716.