In a press conference held at the UMass Boston Campus Center today, Governor Deval Patrick announced a proposal that will use funds from the federal stimulus package to roll back the $1500 fee hike set to take effect in the Fall 2009 semester.

The funds will also be used to increase Pell grants and work study, lifting the burden from more than 80,00 students across the state who attend, or hope to attend, public higher education institutions.

While the governor admitted that this proposal is not a panacea for the state’s education system, he did express hopes that it would “soften the blow”.

It is important to note that the proposal has yet to be approved by the House in its current form and may be subject to changes and alterations in the coming months. Furthermore, while the $1500 fee hike approved by the board of trustees may be rolled back, there is no guarantee in the proposal that fees will not increase by some other mechanism.

Overall the message of the day was one of hope for the future and much needed relief for students at schools state wide.

“That means holding it together until we get through to better times”, the Governor assured.