PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — Bradley University announced a new tuition program on Wednesday that will expand access to higher education to high-achieving students.
According to a news release from the university, the Bradley Commitment will offer full tuition coverage to qualified Illinois students.
“Today, we reaffirm Bradley University’s commitment to accessibility and excellence in higher education. The Bradley Commitment ensures that academically driven students from Illinois, regardless of their financial background, have the opportunity to pursue their dreams without the burden of tuition,” Bradley University Interim President Jonathan Michael said. “By providing this support, we are investing in our future leaders while reaffirming our dedication to fostering academic success for all.”
Bradley hosts STEM internship for highschoolers The commitment will cover tuition costs that are not already covered by other state or federal awards like Illinois MAP grants or Federal Pell Grants.
To qualify students must meet several criteria:
- Be an Illinois resident.
- Graduate from an Illinois high school with a 2.8 GPA or higher.
- Be under the age of 24 when admitted as a first-year student to Bradley.
- Be eligible for a Pell grant.
- Enroll full-time during the fall and spring semesters.
- Family gross income must be $65,000 or less.
Bradley applicants do not need to apply for the commitment, the university’s financial service team will assess eligibility when students submit their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
Dr. Angie Cooksy, vice president for enrollment, marketing and communication at Bradley, breaks down the program.
“It is stacked aid,” said Cooksy. “So basically what that means is when a family files for the FAFSA, they then receive eligibility based on their family’s financial background information. We will take their academic scholarship, their eligibility for the Pell Grant, their eligibility for the MAP grant, and then fill it in with the Bradley Grant to get them up to that full tuition price.”
After the U.S. Department of Education discovered a calculation error in hundreds of thousands of FAFSA applications earlier this year, the processing of applications was delayed.
Cooksy shares what the university knows as far as when FAFSA will be available for families, and how it affects their new program.
“The FAFSA has not yet opened for the 25-26 year,” she said. “It is expected and planned to open sometime in December. But by announcing this now, it allows families to know, ‘Yes, I have an adjusted gross income under $65,000. Bradley is affordable and available to me.'”
More information on Bradly University is available here .
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