The number of Ozarks Technical Community College students receiving a financial aid instrument targeted at adult students pursuing training in high-demand fields more than tripled during the last school year. The Fast Track Workforce Incentive Grant is primarily designed for students 25 and older who desire careers in fields like nursing, manufacturing and teaching.
For the 2022-23 school year, 170 OTC students received Fast Track grants. The prior year, only 52 OTC students accepted Fast Track funding. Beginning with the inception of the Fast Track grant in 2019, OTC averaged 51 Fast Track recipients until the 2022-23 school year.
The increase in Fast Track recipients at OTC correlates to changes in the financial aid instrument Governor Mike Parson signed into law in the summer of 2022. The new legislation made Fast Track a traditional grant rather than a potentially forgivable loan. Before the change, a student receiving Fast Track grant dollars would have to pay the funds back if they did not meet specific criteria, like residing in Missouri for at least three years after completing college.
“The loan component of Fast Track had a chilling effect on students,” said Jordan Schreiber, OTC college director of student success. “Many students would not apply for financial aid, which meant they wouldn’t go to college to receive valuable training. Changing Fast Track to a grant made it much more accessible.”
OTC’s 170 Fast Track students represented 25% of the state’s 658 Fast Track recipients for the 2022-23 school year. Missouri’s 11 other community colleges had 107 students receiving Fast Track.
The most popular programs for OTC students who benefitted from Fast Track during the 2022-23 school year were:
- Health Information Technology – 19
- Practical Nursing – 17
- Accounting and Business Management – 12
- Dental Hygiene – 8
- Cybersecurity and Social Work – 7 each
For a complete list of Fast Track eligible programs, visit the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development’s website.
To be eligible for Fast Track funding, individuals must meet the following criteria:
- Be at least 25 years old.
- Students younger than 25 could be eligible for Fast Track if they have not been enrolled in school (high school or college) in the prior two years.
- Be a U.S. citizen and lived in Missouri for at least two years.
- Not yet earned a bachelor’s degree.
- Make less than $40,000 per year as an individual or $80,000 per year for a couple filing jointly.
The Missouri House and Senate are each considering bills during this legislative session that, if signed into law, would increase the income eligibility ceiling for Fast Track to $50,000 for an individual and $100,000 for a couple filing jointly. The income cap would grow in the following years based on the Consumer Price Index.