Three Historically Black Colleges and Universities—Howard University, Spelman College, and Morehouse College—are joining a national initiative that brings free courses for college credit to high schools serving large numbers of low-income students.

HBCU leaders say the effort, led by the National Education Equity Lab, is an opportunity to further their mission and scout prospective students who might not have initially considered college at all.

For weeks, dozens of Florida Dreamers traveled to Tallahassee to speak face-to-face with lawmakers and encourage them to keep in place a law that allows residents brought to the United States as children to qualify for in-state college tuition. 

Britney Ortiz and Aquiles Barreto, who are recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, describe what the recent victory means for them and other Dreamers. 

As the idea of free community college gains traction across the country, some lawmakers are getting bolder in their concepts by expanding existing programs or pitching legislation that will offer free college to anyone.

The latest example is Massachusetts, where Democratic Gov. Maura Healey’s 2024 budget includes a proposed $20 million to expand the state’s free community college program for any student over the age of 25 without a college degree.