Addressing the issue of college affordability head on, the University of Michigan has introduced a new financial aid program for in-state students that offers a guarantee of free tuition for up to four years on the Ann Arbor campus for students with family incomes of $65,000 or less. Said President Mark Schlissel at the June 2017 announcement: “The ‘Go Blue Guarantee’ cuts through the complexities of financial aid to help us reach talented students from all communities in our state.”

The Go Blue Guarantee amplifies the university’s longstanding commitment to meet financial need for all in-state students, and it does not reduce any need-based aid for students from families earning more than $65,000. In fact, many students from qualifying families earning up to $180,000 a year are awarded tuition assistance.

With the help of donors, U-M has been able to increase the undergraduate financial aid budget by an average of 11.3 percent per year over the last decade, well outpacing the 4 percent-per-year average increase for in-state undergraduate tuition. That means it actually costs less today to attend U-M than it did 10 years ago for many in-state undergraduate students who receive need-based financial aid.

In 2015, President Mark Schlissel challenged the university’s 19 schools and colleges, the Office of Student Life, the athletic department, Michigan Medicine and other units on the Ann Arbor campus to develop plans to make U-M a more diverse, equitable and inclusive institution. Both the UM-Flint and UM-Dearborn campuses were consulted during the planning process to draw upon their deep and successful experiences promoting equity and inclusion for highly diverse campus communities.

From this work — enhanced by the critical input of students, faculty and staff at more than 200 engagement sessions — a single, overarching plan was created. Titled “Many Voices, Our Michigan,” it outlines the university’s goals for the coming five years. Robert Sellers, U-M’s first-ever chief diversity officer, introduced the plan to an enthusiastic audience Oct. 6, 2016.

“The value of creating an inclusive campus community — one in which people of different abilities, races and ethnicities, political and religious views, sexual orientations and gender identities feel welcome and accepted — is immeasurable,” said Sellers.

Recommendations from the universitywide strategic plan include:

• A program for incoming freshmen to help assess and develop skills for navigating cultural and other differences.
• Enhanced educational programming for all new faculty on inclusive teaching methods.
• New outreach efforts to recruit and retain a more diverse pool of students, faculty and staff.

To demonstrate his commitment to bringing the ideas of the strategic plan to life, Schlissel has earmarked $85 million in new investments over five years to fund their implementation.

The plan’s year one progress report was released in November 2017.

Complementing the university’s efforts to enhance diversity in its student body, the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan (AAUM) recently announced plans to increase the fund for its Leadership, Excellence, Achievement and Diversity (LEAD) Scholarship Program by $30 million. With the enhanced funding, the LEAD program, which was established to bolster minority enrollment and improve access to opportunity, will be able to reward between $5,000 and $15,000 to 75 scholars each year.

“Diversity makes for a better university, in every facet, which is why we felt that tripling our LEAD scholarship fund was the right thing to do,” said Steve Grafton, AAUM president. “Not only does a diverse student population help minority students feel more welcome on campus, it teaches all students the value of engaging with people of many cultures.”

In addition to financial support, the program offers access to peer and alumni mentors, professional development resources and internships — creating connections that last long after the students leave U-M.