Rock Hill’s York Tech to offer free tuition as part of McMaster’s COVID aid spending
York Technical College in Rock Hill will offer more than 100 programs to students for free starting next semester.
Last week, S.C. Gov. Henry’s McMaster announced a workforce scholarship pilot program at South Carolina’s 16 technical colleges, including York Tech, to address the state’s labor shortage, according to a news release from McMaster’s office.
McMaster said he plans to designate $17 million of federal Governor’s Emergency Education Relief aid to fund the scholarships, which will initially cover the cost of tuition and fees for up to 15,000 students at state technical colleges, the release said.
“South Carolina must be proactive in addressing the labor shortage,” McMaster said in a statement. “This funding will take on the crisis head-on by providing thousands of South Carolinians with the skills needed to thrive in several high-demand careers.”
McMaster asked South Carolina lawmakers to provide $124 million of federal COVID-19 relief money to continue the scholarship program through June 2024.
The scholarships, for any adult or high school graduate in South Carolina, can only be used for associate’s degrees or industry credentials in high-demand careers, such as manufacturing, health care, computer science and information technology, transportation distribution and logistics, and construction, the release said.
York Tech students, who are eligible for the scholarship program, are guaranteed one year of free tuition and fees for credit and non-credit programs, college officials said.
Scholarship recipients are required to maintain a 2.0 grade point average and meet one of the following requirements:
▪ Are employed
▪ Take a financial literacy course offered by the college
▪ Complete 100 hours of voluntary time to a nonprofit or public-service organization
York Tech, which has about 7,000 students, has opened registration for spring. Students are encouraged to enroll by Dec. 10. The scholarships will be applied to a student’s account after all other financial aid has been exhausted, according to York Tech’s website.
This story was originally published November 9, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
