To help middle-class California students and families cover the rising cost of a college degree, the University of California, Davis, today announced it has launched a new financial aid program.

The Aggie Grant Plan will award about $3,000 annually to eligible students whose annual family incomes are between $80,000 and $120,000. The grants will cover about 25 percent of base undergraduate tuition and fees.

“This new program reflects our commitment to sustaining access to a UC Davis education for students across the socioeconomic spectrum,” said Adela de la Torre, interim vice chancellor for student affairs. “It recognizes that middle-class families need additional financial support.”

The Aggie Grant Plan builds on the University of California's Blue and Gold Opportunity Plan, which expands access for lower-income students. The Blue and Gold plan covers base tuition and fees for students with annual family incomes of up to $80,000.

"It’s very exciting to be able to help this middle-income group in ways that we haven’t been able to in the past," said Katy Maloney, director of the UC Davis Financial Aid Office.

The Aggie Grant Plan will be funded through federal, state and university funds, as well as private grants and scholarships.

To be eligible, a student needs to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, which is due on March 2 each year; be enrolled as a first- to fourth-year undergraduate at UC Davis; be a California resident; and have an annual family income of $80,000 to $120,000 and parental assets of less than $200,000 (excluding home value).

The Aggie Grant Plan will be tied to UC systemwide or base tuition and fees, which are set by the UC Board of Regents. They are $12,192 for California residents for the 2012-13 academic year.

At UC Davis, total tuition and fees for 2012-13, including campus-based fees, come to $13,877.

In 2011-12, more than half of all UC Davis undergraduates — 53 percent — received enough financial aid to fully cover their base tuition and fees, and 44 percent of those who earned bachelor’s degrees did so without taking out loans.

Collectively, UC Davis students received more than $250 million in scholarships and grants during the last academic year.