Good news for future students: Starting Tuesday, you can apply to go to college for free. As part of a statewide initiative to remove financial barriers that prevent students from pursuing higher education, schools across Colorado are waiving their application fees.

That initiative is making a huge difference for students who are making ends meet, like Melissa Chavez, by removing the first financial hurdle to higher education. She's a first-generation college student at the University of Colorado Boulder and a working mom.

Melissa Chavez CBS

"It's difficult often times when people ask me how I do it. I just say I don't sleep," she said with a laugh. "I just always felt that I was capable of more and had this drive to want to do more. And these free application days are what got studen

See Full Page