Summertime in the Empire State brings lots of things that many of us have been looking forward to: fun, sun, warm weather, and of course, the end of school.

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For 12th graders who are graduating from high school, summertime also marks a milestone in life. Many are looking forward to working, military service, or college. Now, thanks to a recent change by New York Governor Kathy Hochul and the State Education Department, every graduating high school senior has a chance to go to college in New York.

What Is New York Doing For High School Seniors?

Earlier this year the Governor, in her State of the State Address, said she was going to make it easier for graduating seniors to attend college in the Empire State and as part of their Agenda to Eliminate Barriers to Higher Education all graduating seniors in New York State have automatic acceptance to the local SUNY or CUNY community college in their county or borough.

Access to quality higher education is an engine for social mobility and we are taking comprehensive steps to ensure that college is affordable and accessible for students from all backgrounds... My administration remains committed to removing barriers and easing the pathway to higher education for all high school seniors - lifting up students to build a brighter future for themselves and New York
-Governor Kathy Hochul

How Is Automatic SUNY/CUNY Going To Work?

The approximate 125,000 high school students who are graduating this year outside of New York City will receive a package from SUNY, along with the approximate 65,000 seniors from New York City who will get a package from CUNY, detailing how the acceptance system will work.

Each student will get personalized information regarding the process to enroll, access to financial aid assistance if needed, and multiple people for them to work with if they need additional help.

There is a place for every New Yorker at SUNY, and we are excited to make college an easy decision because our high school seniors and their parents understand their options. High-demand jobs increasingly require a college education, and thanks to New York's generous financial aid offerings, SUNY is an extraordinary value proposition.
-John B. King, Jr., Chancellor of The New York State University of New York

XX Pieces Of Advice For Every WNY Graduate

It's getting to be graduation weekend in Western New Yorker, and here's some advice every graduate should here.

Check Out the Best-Selling Album From the Year You Graduated High School

Do you remember the top album from the year you graduated high school? Stacker analyzed Billboard data to determine just that, looking at the best-selling album from every year going all the way back to 1956. Sales data is included only from 1992 onward when Nielsen's SoundScan began gathering computerized figures.

Going in chronological order from 1956 to 2020, we present the best-selling album from the year you graduated high school.