FROM INSIDE HIGHER EDUCATION: “Walz is known for believing in the importance of postsecondary education and investing in the state’s public colleges and universities. Walz signed into law a free college program known as North Star Promise that covered the cost of tuition to any public college in the state for students from families making less than $80,000 a year. Another scholarship program made college free for students who are members of a tribal nation. Under his leadership, the state launched a direct admissions program that guarantees graduating high school seniors a spot at participating colleges. Those changes and others, along with an investment of $650 million for higher education over two years, helped boost enrollment in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System, which includes 26 community and technical colleges and seven four-year institutions.” Read the full assessment here.