Higher Education Services Corporation, New York State

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Agency Web Site: https://www.hesc.ny.gov/

Mission

The Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) provides centralized processing of student financial aid programs. HESC administers the State’s Excelsior Scholarship, the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), and other State and Federal aid programs.

Organization and Staffing

HESC is governed by a Board of Trustees composed of 15 members. Ten members are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate; the remaining five members, serving in an ex-officio capacity, include the State Education Department (SED) Commissioner, State University of New York (SUNY) Chancellor, City University of New York (CUNY) Chancellor, SUNY Student Assembly President, and Chair of the CUNY Student Senate. Daily operations are managed by HESC’s President and senior administrative staff.

Budget Highlights

The FY 2024 Executive Budget recommends $1.2 billion in total appropriations for HESC and a workforce of 103 FTEs. The FY 2024 appropriation level represents a $7 million net increase from the previous year, primarily due to a new Federal grant award to administer Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) in New York.

For more information on this agency's budget recommendations located in the Executive Budget Briefing Book, click on the following link:

Briefing Book – Higher Education (PDF)

Program Highlights

New York State Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)

TAP is one of the largest need-based grant programs in the nation and the cornerstone of New York’s student financial aid programs. In the 2021-22 academic year (AY 2022), more than 235,000 New Yorkers attending college were awarded more than $718 million in TAP funds to help pay their college tuition costs. The FY 2023 Enacted Budget included a historic expansion of TAP to part-time students that will provide financial assistance to tens of thousands of New York residents seeking a college degree.

Senator Jose R. Peralta DREAM ACT

In 2019, the Senator Jose R. Peralta DREAM Act was enacted, opening the doors of higher education to thousands of undocumented students by providing them with access to the Excelsior Scholarship, TAP, and other State-administered scholarships.

Targeted Scholarship, Loan Forgiveness, and Award Programs

During AY 2022, HESC-administered State scholarship and loan forgiveness programs provided tens of thousands of students with targeted awards towards their pursuit of a college education, with approximately $189 million going to support the college costs of more than 60,000 students.

These totals include over $126 million for almost 30,000 recipients of Excelsior Scholarships. In 2017, building on the State’s already generous tuition assistance, New York launched the groundbreaking Excelsior Scholarship to provide tuition-free college for middle-class families. The first-of-its-kind program covers tuition at New York’s public colleges and universities for families earning up to $125,000 a year.

College Access and Outreach Programs

New York State continues its commitment to ensuring that its students have both access to a college education and an understanding of their financial aid options, and HESC continues its commitment to supporting the pursuit and attainment of a postsecondary degree for all New York State students. In AY 2022, to combat the negative impacts of the pandemic on student achievement and bolster college access and preparedness, HESC expanded its virtual events forum to engage high school students and their families, especially among students at risk of not pursuing a college education. This platform expanded HESC’s reach to thousands more New Yorkers, including those who would otherwise have been blocked from participation due to transportation, childcare, linguistic, safety, or other concerns.

Note: Most recent estimates as of 02/01/2023