Scholarship competition voting begins online
LANSING—Senate Democratic Leader Gretchen Whitmer and members of the Senate Democratic Caucus announced that voting began Wednesday for the 2013 #mi2020 Scholarship Competition at www.michigan2020.com/
Current Michigan high school seniors from around the state have submitted passionate and thought-provoking videos that explain why Michigan needs to enact the Senate Democrats’ Michigan 2020 Plan to offer free college tuition to all students.
“I continue to be impressed by the talent of Michigan’s young people, and these videos are a great example of the promise our future holds if we help these kids follow their dreams,” said Senator Whitmer. “The Michigan 2020 Plan will dramatically change the landscape of our state, and these students’ videos add to the growing support from Michigan business leaders, economic experts, teachers and parents that are urging Michigan legislators to take action on this proposal.”
The #mi2020 Scholarship Competition was open to all Michigan high school seniors, whether they are attending public school, private school or are homeschooled. The winner will receive up to $10,000 for their first year’s expenses at a public Michigan university or community college. To enter, high school seniors were asked to create a short video that explains why Michigan needs to enact the Michigan 2020 Plan to offer free college tuition to all students. The first round of online voting starts today and will run through 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, May 15, 2013. The top 10 vote getters will move on to the final round and will have a chance to win $10,000. Individuals can vote once per day per video.
The #mi2020 Scholarship Competition is designed to engage Michigan’s young people in the discussion on the Michigan 2020 Plan. Senate Democrats recently introduced legislation to implement the proposal—Senate Bills 223, 224 and 225 and Joint Resolution M. The Michigan 2020 Plan would enable all Michigan high school graduates to have their tuition and associated costs paid for at one of Michigan’s community colleges or public universities. The proposal would come at no extra cost to taxpayers and would instead be paid for by reducing ineffective and outdated tax loopholes. The total estimated cost of this program is $1.8 billion per year once fully implemented. To learn more about the Michigan 2020 Plan, you can visit http://www.michigan2020.com/.