Please join us for the launch of “Paying for College,” a set of new resources aimed at helping families understand how they can finance a four-year college education.

“Paying for College: How Minnesota Families Make It Happen,” will premiere Sunday, Nov. 11 at 8 p.m. on tpt MN. This event will be an opportunity to preview the core program and see highlights of the videos, with plenty of time left for conversation among education and community leaders about just how we can put these tools to work to help Minnesota families.

Please register if you would like to attend and consider passing this on to friends and colleagues who may be interested, using the “Share this event” options above.

Schedule

4-4:30 p.m. — Reception begins (beverages and appetizers served)
4:30-5:30 p.m. — Opening comments and preview screenings
5:30-6 p.m. — Group discussion
6 p.m. — Conclusion

Brief comments will be made by Larry Pogemiller, director of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education; Marlene M. Ibsen, chief executive officer and president of Travelers Foundation and vice president, community relations for Travelers; and MaryAnn Baenninger, president of the College of Saint Benedict.

“Financing a college education is not rocket science and it is not unknowable. You can understand this…. It means you may have to have some conversations that may be a little uncomfortable. But there is no reason that financial aid and financing college has to feel like managing derivatives.”
—Carol Stack, co-author of The Financial Aid Handbook, principal at Hardwick-Day and expert interviewed for the Paying for College program

A lack of knowledge about the available resources for financing college discourages students from pursing this important goal. Given Minnesota’s need for a well-educated citizens and employees, these new resources can be part of our response, challenging myths and opening new doors to higher education.

Resources

The complete set of “Paying for College” video resources are listed below:

• “Paying for College” — the core 27-minute program, with insights on how Minnesota families can make it happen;
• “Paying for College: First in the family” — a 10-minute video for families with students who will be the first to go to college;
• “Paying for Private College” — a 10-minute video on how families can afford private nonprofit colleges; and
• “Paying for College in Hmong, Somali and Spanish” — three separate 10-minute videos of conversations in each language about affording college.

Co-sponsored by the Minnesota Office of Higher Education and the Minnesota Private College Fund, the program is a co-production with TPT’s Minnesota Productions & Partnerships.

The event is hosted by the Travelers Foundation, the charitable arm of Travelers, which has provided a grant that has helped make the project possible.

In addition to the grant from the Travelers Foundation, other critical funding was provided by:

• The Saint Paul Foundation, an affiliate of Minnesota Philanthropy Partners, and
• The Council of Independent Colleges, through its Foundation for Independent Higher Education.