Despite the old addage, you can teach an old bulldog new tricks as long as they can afford the books! Minnesota West Community and Technical College received a grant to expand its “Z-Degree” program, where students can earn degrees with zero textbook costs. That may sound small until you remember some college textbooks can cost between two to three thousand dollars extra a year! Programs like this matter because students sometimes skip buying required books entirely due to cost. The grant will help expand more no-cost courses and update free learning materials across different subjects at Minnesota West College! Knowledge should be challenging. Paying for it should not be!

At North Carolina State University, commencement speaker Anil Kochhar surprised graduates by announcing he and his wife would pay off all student loans incurred during the students’ final year at the Wilson College of Textiles. The gift honored Kochhar’s late father, who graduated from the same college in the 1950s. Around 200 graduates were affected. The crowd exploded with cheers, because apparently the most inspirational graduation speech is one that comes with fewer loan payments. America is a better place when its filled with smarter people with useful skills. Getting out of student-debt can be harder than getting rid of soviet era super fleas! We are all better, smarter and more kind when we have an affordable path to a bigger brain! This has been your 3 minutes of good news today. Until next time, keep your nose pointed toward the good stuff and like me TRY to be a goodboy WOOF!