New 'Top 10% Promise' program to offer high-achieving NY students direct admission to SUNY

NEW YORK (WABC) -- New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the launch of a new effort to help make higher education more accessible to some of the state's highest-achieving students.

Through the new SUNY Top 10% Promise Program, graduating high school seniors who meet specific academic readiness criteria and have grade point averages in the top 10% of their class will be accepted to at least one State University of New York campus.

The program will take effect for select high school seniors planning to enroll in a college or university for the fall 2025 semester.

"We worry particularly about low income, high achieving students who might be intimidated by that application process," said SUNY Chancellor John King Jr. "They might be the first in their family to go to college."

The nine SUNY campuses that will initially take part in the program include:
- University at Albany
- University at Buffalo
- SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
- SUNY Geneseo
- SUNY New Paltz
- SUNY Oneonta
- SUNY Polytechnic Institute
- Purchase College
- Stony Brook University



The plan is also another way for the Hochul to counteract the Supreme Court's recent ruling on college admissions.

"Look I was terribly disappointed on the Supreme Court decision on race-conscious admissions," added King Jr.."We've been clear at SUNY, we're committed to diversity."

The new direct-admissions program comes after SUNY, along with CUNY and over 50 private institutions, announced they would waive application fees for students during College Application Month.

"And what we're looking forward to, is reaching students that weren't thinking about Stony Brook in the past," said Stony Brook University of Admissions Mark Cortez.

SUNY officials say they are hoping to eventually expand this program to all 700 of the state's school districts. They should know pretty soon just how many students opted into this program and plan to come to this school next fall..Those students will be notified in November, a month earlier than all the others.



You can find out more about the new program on the New York Governor's Office website.

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