OKEECHOBEE – Approximately 100 Okeechobee High School graduates from the Class of 2022 are attending Indian River State College (IRSC) full time thanks to the IRSC Promise Program.

At the Sept. 22 meeting of the Okeechobee County Commission, Rus Brown said 2,200 students in four counties pledged for the 2022 IRSC Promise Program, including 150 from Okeechobee County. The program provides two years of free tuition at IRSC. He said 100 OHS graduates are attending full time and others are attending part-time.

The IRSC Promise Program aims to make college education broadly accessible. Students do not need to demonstrate financial need, and there is no GPA requirement for acceptance to the program. Once in the program, students must maintain enrollment status during fall, spring and summer terms,  and maintain satisfactory academic progress as they pursue an Associate in Arts, Associate in Science, or Applied Associate in Science Degree.

“In the next month, we hope to announce this year’s Promise Program,” said Brown. “We are very excited about the program and the opportunities this provides for families of students who never thought they would be able to go the next step after high school.”