State unveils $31M tuition-funding program

So he’s now he’s using $31 million in federal stimulus funds
to create a similar program for about 9,000 Hoosiers.

The Indiana Department of Workforce Development today announced
a new program today that will provide $6,000 over two years to pay for students to earn an associate’s degree or a vocational
certificate.

The scholarships, called Workforce Acceleration Grants, are earmarked for unemployed workers or their
spouses, or students from impoverished families.

“Economic realities have placed a strain on many Hoosiers in need
of a college degree at a time when higher education has never been more essential to our personal and collective prosperity.
The Workforce Acceleration Grant offers welcome relief just when many of these individuals need it the most,” said Teresa
Lubbers, Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education, in a statement.

The scholarships can be used at more than 50 college
campuses around the state, including Ivy Tech Community College and IUPUI, as well as at for-profit educators like Harrison
College and ITT Technical Institute.

The scholarships cannot be used for bachelors, graduate or any liberal arts programs.

The
Workforce Acceleration Grants are a smaller program than Daniels proposed last year.

He wanted to spend about $50 million
to provide $6,000 scholarships for students to enroll at state-supported Ivy Tech. Daniels wanted to cover students from families
making about twice the federal poverty limit, or $60,000 for a family of four, projecting that about 24,000 students would
qualify.

But his idea of leasing the Hoosier Lottery to a private operator never gained traction in the Indiana General
Assembly. In 2007, Daniels also proposed leasing the lottery to pay for a mix of scholarships and a life sciences fund.