Over the past two years, Minnesota has seen some of the highest college enrollment increases in the country thanks to investments made by Senate DFLers in 2023. This budget continues that work by investing critical funds to close the shortfall in the State Grant program. Additionally, Senate DFLers kept their promise to former foster youth by fully funding the Fostering Independence Grant program, and reaffirmed their commitment to the North Start Promise program, the best-in-the-nation tuition scholarship for Minnesotans that’s behind our boost in enrollment across the state.
Key Provisions:
Funding for financial aid
The 2025 Higher Education budget includes funding for three critical state-level financial aid programs: the State Grant, Fostering Independence Grants (FIG), and the North Star Promise. This funding includes a $44.5 million increase to the State Grant Program and an $8 million increase to FIG over the next two years.
College Financing Literacy Act
This legislation requires any institution that receives state financial aid to use a standardized form to issue financial aid offers to current and prospective students. The standardized aid offer form will be developed by the Office of Higher Education after an extensive stakeholder consultation process. The legislation is based off of recommendations from a 2022 report by the Government Accountability Office, which found that most colleges provide inconsistent and misleading financial information to students and families. College is a huge investment for students and families. They deserve to have all the information they need to make responsible financial decisions. Standardized aid offers will make it easy for Minnesotans to compare costs between colleges and make the choice that’s best for them.
Fostering Independence Grants
This budget invests an additional $8 million each biennium into the Fostering Independence Grants (FIG) program. FIG provides grants to students who have been in the foster system to cover the cost of tuition, fees, food, housing, and transportation. Fosters are more likely than traditional students to face food and housing insecurity while attending college. This critical funding will help fosters meet their basic needs while they finish their degrees. Senate DFLers backfilled a program shortfall of $5 million in 2024, and this budget corrects that shortfall in the base. With this budget, we are keeping our promise to fosters by fully funding the Fostering Independence Grants program.
Opiate antagonists
This legislation requires public colleges and universities to stock two doses of an opiate antagonist in every campus residential building. The opioid epidemic is impacting college campuses across the state. Making opiate antagonists available in college dorms will save lives.
Residency and research programs
This budget includes funding for the United Family Medicine Residency Program, Hennepin Healthcare Graduate Family Medicine education, Hennepin County Medical Center addiction medicine fellowship program, cannabis research, CentraCare residency program, and spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury research grants. Research programs are under attack at the federal level and this funding will ensure that Minnesota remains at the forefront of medical research and training for future physicians.
Did Not Pass:
Changes to the North Star Promise program
Throughout the regular session, student after student came to the Higher Education committee to share how the North Star Promise program has made it possible for them or for their friends to attend college. Representatives from the University of Minnesota and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities shared with the committee how North Star Promise has contributed to the enrollment boost across the state. Still, Republicans continue to paint the program as unsuccessful or unfair. The GOP continues to introduce bills that would limit the reach of North Star Promise, add barriers to the program, or defund the program entirely. The Senate DFL, with this budget, makes clear that North Star Promise is not going anywhere and will continue to provide important grant funding to students for years to come.
Expansion of the Direct Admissions program
The Direct Admissions program was established in 2023 to accept students from participating school districts directly into Minnesota colleges and universities. This program tells high school students across the state that they are college material and is an important piece of the enrollment gains we have made in the last two years. The proposed legislation would have required all school districts to participate in the program by the 2029-2030 school year. Despite bipartisan support, Republicans blocked this provision from being included in the final Higher Education omnibus bill.
Elimination of state aid to undocumented students
Senate Republicans introduced several bills during the 2025 session that would make undocumented students ineligible for state financial aid. The Senate DFL firmly believes that all students in Minnesota should have access to college and providing state aid to undocumented students is critical to ensuring success in their postsecondary educational pursuits.