SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – California has launched a new college savings program for low-income public school students across the state.
The CalKIDS program has invested $1.9 billion into saving accounts for low-income students in grades 1-12 and newborns born after July 1, 2022, are eligible as well, the Governor's Office announced in a release. Families of public-school students can access the saving accounts under their kids' names that have investments between $500 and $1,500, the release said.
"California is telling our students that we believe they're college material – not only do we believe it, we’ll invest in them directly," Governor Newsom said.
All accounts have an automatic deposit of $500 for those in grades 1-12. Following the automatic deposit, students are eligible for two additional deposits of $500. Newborn children will receive an automatic deposit of $25 and then two additional deposits of $25 and $50 for a total investment of $100.
"My goal with this program was to bridge the gap between wealth inequality and the high cost of education," Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian said. "CalKIDS will expand access to college through savings by providing each child born in the state of California a seed deposit in a ScholarShare 529 college savings account."
Families can access their accounts through the online portal. In the next few months, CALKIDS will send letters to qualifying children and families.
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