The state will add $62 million to financial aid for the state’s public community colleges, state universities and UMass schools, Governor Maura Healey announced Wednesday — expanding broad coverage for low-income students and reducing out-of-pocket expenses for middle-income students by up to half.

“This expansion of MASSGrant Plus will open doors for more students to access higher education, which will strengthen our economy as a whole,” Healey announced Wednesday morning at Salem State University.

The MASSGrant Plus Expansion, which draws on funding from the so-called millionaire’s tax passed last year, is expected to benefit 25,000 students at state colleges and universities.

The aid will go to all students who enroll in public colleges and universities in Massachusetts and qualify based on their FAFSA applications and apply retroactively for enrolled students for the current semester by sending credits to their accounts.

The program will cover full cost of tuition and fees for Pell Grant-eligible students, not including room and board. The new fund expands the coverage to include the “expected family contribution” determined by the federal government and a $1,200 allowance for books and supplies.

Middle-income students — defined as people whose families make from $73,000 to $100,000 annually — will have tuition and mandatory instructional fees costs reduced by up to half of their out-of-pocket expenses.

The funding will now cover part-time Pell Grant-eligible students in addition to the full-time students. Only full-time middle income students will qualify.

Board of Higher Education Chair Chris Gabrieli said the board approved a new strategy for financing higher education in 2022.

“The framework’s top priority was to expand state financial aid and make college truly affordable for our lowest income students and less debt burdensome for our moderate-income students,” Gabrieli said.

The funding comes from $84 million in financial aid expansion funds in included in the FY24 Budget. The governor’s office said the remaining funds will “support ongoing financial aid policies” and implement the state’s new tuition equity law allowing undocumented students and qualifying non-U.S. citizens to access financial aid.

This follows the announcement of a $20 million investment in MassReconnect, a program making community college free for residents 25 years old and older, this fall.

Education officials and advocates called the move “historic,” noting the opportunities for “upward economic mobility” and the state’s work force.

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In the wake of the end of affirmative action, said MTA President Max Page, “knocking down financial barriers” is key to expanding diversity in these institutions.

Salem State student Kiana Alexis, said “after being told about the student aid program, I have hopes that paying for school and getting through my degree will be much simpler.”