State Treasurer to Unveil Plan to Encourage College Savings 

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — State Treasurer Deb Goldberg is unveiling what she’s calling a “first-of-its-kind pilot program” for college savings accounts.

Goldberg said the program — called $eedMA — will be available to all kindergarten students in Worcester public schools. Each child will receive a commitment of $50 to cultivate a 529 college savings account at the start of the 2016-2017 school year.

The goal of the $eedMA program is to encourage more children to save for higher education by delivering high-quality financial education programming to students and their families.

Goldberg said another goal of the program is to help build a culture centered on saving for the future and employing prudent budget management.

Goldberg said her office is working to develop a standard program that can be put into place across the state.