HOLLAND, MI (WHTC-AM/FM, Feb. 22, 2022) – Matthew Scogin wants to spread his vision beyond Holland.
The President of Hope College will be heading to Austin, Texas to put forward his tuition alternative initiative before members of the South by Southwest EDU Conference and Festival. Scogin will present the “Hope Forward: College Without Tuition” on Wednesday afternoon, March 9th, during the Business and Investment track in the event’s Future 20 format.
The initiative, unveiled last July, is intended to fully fund student tuition through giving by alumni … a form of “pay it forward” in which graduates contribute to the educational costs of those who are following them at Hope.
Scogin will talk for 20 minutes on his alternative to what he calls the “broken nature” of the current business model of higher education that had contributed to a decline in student enrollment nationwide. “We want to life into our name,” he said during his last appearance on “WHTC Morning News” this past December. “We want to be graduating students who are agents of hope, going out into the world not burdened by debt, but have the full ability to make an impact, rather than chasing income just to pay off their debt.”
Hope College officials say that the current endowment level of $308 million needs to increase by an additional $1.1 billion in order to see Scogin’s “Hope Forward” dream realized. A gift from an anonymous donor has enabled the school to begin the program with 22 students this fall, and a related “Anchored Tuition Pledge” begun earlier in February will freeze tuition rates for incoming students throughout their time at Hope while holding rates for current students.
