The Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY, one of the most diverse and affordable public graduate journalism schools in the nation, is pioneering a path toward free tuition for all of its students.

In January 2024, thanks to a generous gift from Craig Newmark Philanthropies, we announced that we would begin offering free tuition to half of our class starting in August 2025. This contribution also marked the launch of our campaign to become the first J-School to offer free tuition to all of our students.

This is a historic moment for our school — and for every stakeholder who is part of our success.

Support the Campaign

Our campaign to provide free tuition aims to ensure that all students, no matter their background or income, can access a high-quality journalism education. This is one of the values the school embraces as part of CUNY, a public institution that has for decades served as a beacon of access and opportunity for New Yorkers.

This initiative is the main focus of our fundraising campaign, which is designed to ensure that our students get the best journalism education. We aim to equip them with the skills, knowledge and critical thinking necessary to reimagine the news industry. We are raising additional funds to, among other things, establish new endowed chairs, launch innovative tech initiatives, train journalists to be safe in adversarial environments, prepare business leaders to lead local news organizations, and rebuild trust in media.

If you’d like to know more, or learn how you can be part of this effort, please reach out to Jessica Denaro, Executive Director of Development, at .