Trinity College will cover full tuition, housing and meals for admitted students who live in Hartford under a new slate of financial aid programs it announced Wednesday.
The Hartford liberal arts college also is eliminating its application fee and offering half-tuition grants to admitted students from Hartford County and five neighboring counties. The programs apply to students entering Trinity in the 2027-28 academic year.
The centerpiece, called Hometown Hartford, will cover full tuition, housing and meals for admitted students whose primary residence is in Hartford. Based on Trinity’s current published rates, the package is worth about $93,000 annually. The benefit does not cover Trinity’s fees, which total about $3,330 a year, though the college said students can apply federal aid, work-study or outside scholarships toward them.
Students must apply and be admitted to Trinity to qualify. The college said the program builds on its partnerships with Capitol Squash, Hartford Youth Scholars and Hartford Promise.
A second program, Centered in Connecticut, will provide half-tuition grants to admitted students who live in Hartford County or one of its five neighboring counties: Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, New London and Tolland.
With Trinity’s tuition currently set at $72,820, the grant is worth about $36,000 a year. The program covers six of Connecticut’s eight counties, excluding Fairfield and Windham.
The third program, Honoring Our Own, will cover full tuition for children of faculty and staff who have worked full time at Trinity for at least three consecutive years.
Trinity is funding the programs through its existing financial aid budget, said Andrea Cuevas, the college’s director of media relations.
“Hartford is our home. Our histories and futures are intertwined with one another. When one of us rises, so should the other,” President Daniel Lugo said.
He noted that Hartford residents invested $600,000 in 1872 to help build the campus where Trinity now sits.
Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam praised the initiative, saying Hometown Hartford is “breaking down financial barriers and building a direct bridge to opportunity for our young people.”
Founded in 1823, Trinity enrolls about 2,100 students from 41 states and 80 countries at its Summit Street campus in Hartford.
