Most college freshmen foresee looming debt, but recent Kelly Walsh High School graduate Lindsey Ford will make money from the experience.

"I think I will have around $4,000 saved after two years," she said.

The savings isn't from a job - though she plans to work in school - but from Casper College's Hathaway and Hathaway PLU$ scholarships.

The PLU$ program, which adds up to $1,000 per semester to a student's existing Hathaway award, was what convinced Ford that Casper College was the place for her.

"I had always planned on applying to Casper College, and I got into several out-of-state institutions as well, but the possibility of getting a good education and make money was just too great," Ford said.

Both she and her cousin, Madeline Chuman, received offers for free tuition and a chance to play soccer in another state, but decided on Casper College because of the financial offer.

The program was announced in April as a way to draw students to the community college who might otherwise attend another school. It adds money on top of the state's Hathaway Scholarship, which began with the Class of 2006 as a way to attract more Wyoming students to higher education.

Base tuition for the college is $834 per semester, or $1,668 a year. The Hathaway Honors Scholarship, which requires students to have a 3.5 GPA and 25 on the ACT exam, coupled with the PLU$ Platinum, awards students $5,200 a year.

This means a student would have $3,352 after tuition - more than enough for books and fees, said Lizzy Hede, Hathaway Coordinator for the college.

That is what Ford discovered after ordering her books online and picking them up in the student center on Tuesday. The money left over after two years at Casper College will help her pay for the next two years at either the University of Wyoming or University of Northern Colorado.

Ford said she worried about a lack of the "typical college experience" but the possibility of "a free bed, free food and getting paid to learn things," is more appealing.

The Hathaway PLU$ possibilities were so appealing Ford took the ACT exam four times in order to qualify for the biggest dollar amount.

Ford isn't the only one at Casper College taking advantage of the institution's new scholarship. Hede said many are drawn to the possibility to emerge from college debt-free.

School hasn't started yet so enrollment numbers aren't finalized, but the admissions office reported to the college board in an Aug. 15 memo that the college received 961 applications from high school seniors, 205 more than last year at that time.

Total college enrollment as of Aug. 12 was 3.7 percent more than last year at that time.

Freshman Britney Bisiar planned on attending the University of Wyoming until her guidance counselor at Kelly Walsh outlined her Hathaway and Hathaway PLU$ possibilities.

"This did seal the deal for me," Bisiar said. "I was not planning on going to Casper College but once they did the Hathaway PLU$ I thought, why go somewhere where you take out a loan when you can go somewhere where you will make money?"

Bisiar said she is going to major in psychology and plans to use Casper College as a way to take her base requirements in small classes and discern what she wants to study in the future.

This is not the only community college in the state working on ideas for further financial aid, said Jim Rose, executive director of the Wyoming Community College Commission.

"I do know others have talked about similar kinds of coupling various forms of financial aid and scholarships with Hathaway Scholarship," Rose said.

He is not sure if there will ever be sufficient data to measure whether programs like the Hathaway PLU$ are drawing more students to a particular school, but said he supports any program that gives people additional opportunities to continue their educations.

Reach reporter Christine Robinson at (307) 266-0639 or christine.robinson@casperstartribune.net

* The Hathaway Honors and PLU$ Platinum requires a 3.5 GPA and 25 ACT score and gives $5,200 a year.

* The Hathaway Performance and PLU$ Gold requires a 3.0 GPA and 21 ACT score and gives $3,400 a year.

* The Hathaway Opportunity and PLU$ Silver requires a 2.5 GPA and 19 ACT score and gives $2,100 a year.

* The Hathaway Career and PLU$ Bronze requires a 2.5 GPA and 17 ACT or 12 WorkKeys and gives $2,100 a year.]]>