No-cost tuition available to county’s Class of ’22

It’s a great time to be an Osceola County high school senior — school careers are winding down, and prom and other important Class of 2022 events are around the corner.

For those seniors who hadn’t made plans for college — or thought it wasn’t in the plans due to the costs — the county has a super graduation gift: no-cost tuition at Valencia College’s Osceola or Poinciana campus or Osceola Technical College.

“Osceola Prosper” is available to all of this year’s Osceola County high school graduates — public, private, charter, and homeschool grads — and comes from $12 million in federal American Rescue Plan relief funds.

Through Osceola Prosper, this year’s seniors can earn Associate in Arts or Science degrees, complete one of Valencia’s Accelerated Skills Training programs or Technical Certificate Programs, or enroll in one of oTECH’s career education tracks.

“No strings attached,” County Commission Chairman Brandon Arrington said at an announcement event Monday, hours after the plan was announced at all of the county’s high schools.

That made the Monday after Spring Break a good day for Yandell Fret, a Liberty High School senior who said traditional college wasn’t on his horizon due to the cost — until Monday.

“Now it’s free, I’m going to go,” he said, noting he can enroll in a auto mechanic program and get certified at no cost. “I know I can make a career out of it, and one day have my own shop.

“I hadn’t even looked into it. Money was the barrier. This was a big deal (at Liberty). Everybody was going crazy when they heard the news.”

Full program details are available at www.osceolaprosper.com. Among the details, students must complete the FAFSA (general student aid) application, enroll by the spring 2023 semester, create 12 credit hours per academic year and not go on academic suspension.

Arrington said the plan was a response to the county’s post-secondary educates rates rate diminishing greatly because of COVID-19.

“Keeping our community afloat during these tough times meant investing in our youth, and there’s a lot of working class families who hope their students will graduate and get right to work,” he said. “We need to build careers, not jobs. Investments made today will pay dividends in the future.”

Valencia College President Dr. Kathleen Plinske, formerly the president of its Osceola County campuses, helped form the county’s “Got College?” initiative a decade ago to increase get the county’s college-going percentage of graduating seniors, then the lowest in Central Florida. That work paid dividends, but after COVID-19 erased nearly all those years of gains, she called Monday’s announcement, “A dream come true.

“Cost was that significant barrier,” she said. “We’ve had amazing partners, but something like this, that completely removes costs from the equation that no student in the Class of ’22 has to worry about, it’s really wonderful.”

Last fall, the county invested its own $1.3 million to offer all incoming Valencia students $500 scholarships, which Plinske said created a dramatic increase in enrollments, matching a dramatic decrease in the fall of 2020. About 1,500 Osceola students annually enroll in Valencia’s Kissimmee or Poinciana campuses — in normal times — but now she expects 2,000-3,000 this fall.

“Part of it is, this offers pathways that aren’t necessarily a college degree,” she said. “Many students will resonate with being able to enroll in an advanced manufacturing or 24-week welding program and know, in a few months they’ll be on the path to a high-wage career who would have previously opted out.

“I want to thank our Osceola County Commission for having the vision to invest in our student and make college possible for everyone in Osceola County.”

County leaders said there is also some funds set aside for those with transportation or child care issues. The plan is in place for the Class of 2022, but making it available in future years depends on the number of students who take advantage this year, and the availability of future funds.