Nearly 1,700 more high school students will have the chance to take free classes through colleges and universities this fall.
With the additional 1,692 early college seats, more than 12,000 high school students could participate in the program for the 2026-27 school year.
The initiative allows high school students to take real, college-credited courses through public or private universities at no cost.
The Early College Joint Committee of the Boards of Higher Education and Elementary and Secondary Education approved 29 new early college partnerships, with the latest round designating collaborations with UMass Amherst, Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Roxbury Community College and Regis College.
Additionally, 23 high schools will launch their first early college programs, to total 101 high schools in Massachusetts partnering with 35 higher education institutions. That is roughly one out of every four high schools in the state.
Gov. Maura Healey set a goal in January to grow early college tenfold, from about 10,000 students then to 100,000 by 2036. She framed it as both an economic imperative and a promise to families.
“This is the largest expansion of Early College in Massachusetts history, and it reflects our commitment to creating more opportunity for students across our state,” Healey said in a statement Wednesday. “This expansion will make higher education more affordable, strengthen our workforce pipeline and continue positioning Massachusetts as a national leader in education and economic opportunity.”
Higher Education Commissioner Noe Ortega said early college “helps students see themselves in higher education, build academic self-esteem, and learn to navigate college while in high school.”
Ortega and Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Pedro Martinez are working jointly on a multi-year plan to meet the governor’s target.
Healey has proposed $15 million in her fiscal 2027 budget for early college — a figure Ortega described as enough “to kick start and continue the momentum,” but the commissioners have cast as not enough to reach 100,000 students.
With the state’s high school population projected to decline to about 250,000 by 2036, enrolling 100,000 students would mean roughly 40% of all high schoolers participating.