Green Mountain College Announces New Affordability Initiatives

POULTNEY, Vt., Dec. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Green Mountain College has a strong historic commitment to make undergraduate education flexible and affordable for Vermonters.

Two years ago, Green Mountain College launched the Vermont Tuition Match Scholarship for high school graduates in Vermont. In this scholarship, GMC pledged to match the tuition levied by the University of Vermont for applicants who meet our admission standards and who enroll full-time. Now, Green Mountain College is launching several new initiatives to make a Green Mountain College degree more attainable.

"We want interested students to know they have the option of attending a Vermont private institution with the advantages of small classes and strong student advising, and that opportunity is not out of reach financially," said Green Mountain College President Paul Fonteyn.

Poultney High School Tuition Match Scholarship. This program offers tuition to PHS graduates at a rate equal to the tuition set by Castleton State College. This means that graduates of Poultney High School who meet our admission standards and enroll at GMC full-time in 2014 would receive a scholarship estimated at $22,000 annually.

"Programs like this will help narrow the affordability gap for our students," said Poultney High School Principal Tom Fitzgerald.

GMC is committed to helping qualified students at other local high schools jump-start their post-secondary education by gaining college credits while still in high school through the Vermont State Colleges Duel Enrollment Program. In the first stage of a collaboration with Burr and Burton Academy in Manchester, Vt., GMC will teach a 3-credit environmental ethics course at the Academy in the spring 2014 semester.

CCV Vermont Tuition Match Scholarship. Green Mountain College recently announced that it is offering graduates of Community College of Vermont (CCV) who meet our admissions standards and enroll full-time at GMC the Vermont Tuition Match Scholarship, in which GMC matches the tuition levied by the University of Vermont.

Online Business Administration Program. In GMC's new 100% online Bachelor of Science in Business Administration program, students can build on college credits they have already accumulated and earn a degree at their own pace. Holders of a two-year associates degree from CCV can take GMC courses to attain an undergraduate degree at a special rate of $300 per credit.

Make a Difference Scholarship. In 2014 the Make a Difference Scholarship will be awarded to a student who will receive full tuition, free room and board and student fees for all four years. The College is seeking nominees for this prestigious scholarship awarded to a student who has made a significant contribution to a fellow human, to society or toward conservation and sustainability (nominations must come from a high school guidance counselor).

Through its affordability efforts, Green Mountain College is able to award scholarships/grants of approximately $9.2 million dollars annually through a combination of institutional aid and endowment scholarship funds.

"Currently 94% of all GMC students receive financial aid, with over 90% receiving institutional support, to help offset the cost of their college education," according to GMC Student Financial Services Director Wendy Ellis, who notes that about 25% of GMC students are the first in their family to attend college or university.

For more details on Green Mountain College's Affordability program, please visit: www.greenmtn.edu/admissions/tuition_aid.aspx

SOURCE Green Mountain College