HUNTINGTON — The prospect of owing thousands of dollars in debt could make or break some students’ decision to further their education.

Marshall University’s Marshall for All initiative helps break down those barriers for students, particularly first-generation college students. The program provides students with opportunities to earn their degrees without taking out student loans.

“When we came to campus, we all talked about the university’s history and who we want to be,” Marshall University President Brad D. Smith said. “We describe ourselves as a prosperity platform. We meet students where they are, and then we give them an opportunity to stand on this platform and reach even higher heights. And we know that many times adversity can get in the way of dreams, and affordability was the number one barrier preventing people from coming, so we said if we’re going to truly be a prosperity platform, then we’re going to eliminate that barrier so that’s no longer going to prevent kids from dreaming big.”

While Smith said Marshall is considered the “most affordable” four-year school in the 16-state Southeast part of the country, the university still had students taking on debt. The initiative was announced during Smith’s investiture as the 38th president of the university on Sept. 16, 2022.

The program began in fall 2023, welcoming the first 100 eligible students and a second group of 100 in fall 2024. This semester, Smith said the university admitted 200 more to the program.

How it works

The initiative has two pathways: Marshall for All: Debt-Free and Marshall for All: Tuition-Free WV. The Debt-Free pathway is for students who complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, whose family is eligible for the Federal Pell Grant, which is based on financial need. The student completes a financial literacy course and a work-study or a paid internship program.

The program works by taking what the student receives in federal dollars (Pell Grant) and any state dollars they qualify for, and the remainder of what is owed is privately funded through the program, Smith said. Family contributions can also be added to help the student.

“What they get beyond that is excellent,” Smith said. “They come in with 100 people just like them. They get four levels of support, so they get a student peer mentor. It’s called a FAM, a Friend of Marshall. They get a professional advisor who helps them figure out, through research and others, what are the things that they’re most excited about in life. They get an academic advisor who helps them, then map that to a major, and then they get an alumni mentor.”

The Marshall for All: Tuition-Free WV pathway allows West Virginia students with a family income of $65,000 or less to attend Marshall with their tuition and mandatory university fees covered. The student will not have to get a loan since all their big expenses will be covered.

The student is in charge of financing their housing, meals, books, and other personal expenses. However, additional financial aid options — including scholarships and grants — are available to help offset those costs.

“Those are families who would qualify for Marshall for All, but since we’re fundraising to be able to bring in students over time, this one is not completely debt-free, but it is tuition-free and college fees,” Smith said.

A total of 729 students in Marshall’s freshman class this year qualified for either Tuition-Free WV or Marshall for All, Smith said.

Of that group, 200 went into the debt-free program, and the other 529 are in the tuition-free program, he said.

Too good to be true?

When Nova Miller-Thomas of Charleston received the letter informing him he was selected for the Marshall for All program, he didn’t believe it was real.

“I’ve always heard the saying if it seems too good to be true then it probably is too good to be true,” Miller-Thomas said during a phone interview.

Miller-Thomas is an environmental science major in his junior year at Marshall. He’s in the original debt-free program, which he said has helped him tremendously through college.

“When you don’t have to worry about paying somebody thousands of dollars, it definitely makes college a whole lot easier because college already can be stressful,” he said.

Miller-Thomas said being in the program gave him the confidence to study something he was passionate about.

“Once I found out that they would pay for it, (it) kind of gave me an extra sense of security. Like they believe in me … so I better do something — even if it’s challenging — something that I’m actually interested in,” Miller-Thomas said.

The first-generation college student said paying for college was a concern of his. He said he believes the program helps level the playing field for incoming students and gives them the resources needed to feel more secure in their college experience.

Now, Miller-Thomas works as one of 10 leaders in Marshall for All, helping new students through the program.

Preparing for the program’s growth

Smith said when creating Marshall for All, the university studied best practices of other colleges, including Berea College in Kentucky and Ohio State University’s Scarlet and Gray Advantage program, and decided to focus on any family which is Pell eligible.

So Marshall’s programs work by combining the financial assistance they receive on a federal or state level with privately funded donations.

“If you look at our tuition being the lowest net tuition, and then you look at what we’re able to get from the federal government with Pell, and then with the state government, that final number, on average, costs about $5,000 a year per student,” Smith explained. “So someone who’s Pell eligible, whose family makes less than $65,000 on average, after we get the federal and state dollars, it leaves about $5,000 unfunded if we want to cover their room, board, books.

“That means over four years, that’s $20,000, so we’re fundraising and saying, ‘Hey, to get one student all the way through without any debt, we need to find someone who’ll donate $20,000.’ … We like to send 100 through at a time, which means you need to raise $2 million to get 100 through. But that’s basically it … federal and state covers it, and then about $5,000 a year covers the rest.”

Smith said the university is in talks with “major donors” who want to be involved with Marshall for All. The ultimate goal of the program is to raise $350 million, after which point interest on the endowment will enable it to continue to grow and fund students’ educations.

“That means every student from here forward will continue to have the opportunity to come if their families make less than $65,000 a year,” he said.

There is no separate application for the tuition-free program. Eligible students will automatically be considered upon applying to and being accepted to Marshall and completing the FAFSA for the upcoming year.

In its second year, Smith said the university is seeing student success in the program.

“We’ve been tracking their success in terms of their grade point average compared to their fellow students who are Pell eligible but didn’t get picked, and we also compare the retention rates, how many freshmen came back their sophomore year,” he said. “They are outperforming their peers on grade point average, retention and community involvement.”

Smith said he’s optimistic about the program’s growth and loves to see how the Marshall for All students are capitalizing on the educational opportunities they’ve been given.

“The program is working, they’re performing well, and we’re excited about expanding to more students.”

Securing the future of the program

Nico Karagosian, president and CEO of the Marshall University Foundation, said in an email response that the program allows students to have more time to focus on their education.

“By eliminating student debt, students have more time and opportunity to focus on their studies and pursue their goals,” Karagosian said. “By removing this financial barrier, we open doors for students and ensure their Marshall experience is more affordable, accessible and achievable.”

Because the program is endowed, it will exist in perpetuity, Karagosian said.

“It will benefit students for generations to come, exactly as our donors have stipulated,” he said.

The foundation has several hundred donors who have committed more than $70 million to the program, according to Karagosian — including the man leading the university.

Marshall aims to expand the program over the next decade with the goal of ensuring all eligible students can graduate debt-free by the university’s bicentennial in 2037.