When the Community College of Philadelphia celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2015, it didn’t accept gifts. Instead it gave them out.

Students of need who are from the City of Philadelphia are now able to pursue an associate’s degree at CCP with no cost for tuition and fees because of the last-dollar scholarship.

“There are far too many students who, even with financial aid, are unable to meet the gap that exists between the financial aid they get and what final tuition would be,” CCP president Donald ‘Guy’ Generals said.

The college estimated that 440 students would qualify for the program in the fall. By the third year that number is expected to nearly double. The college estimates the average gap between Pell and full tuition and fees will be about $500 annually per student.

To maintain the scholarship, students must stay enrolled full-time and maintain a 2.5 cumulative grade-point average at the end of each academic year.