Grown-ish finally returns tonight (Jan. 2) on ABC’s Freeform. The season kicks off with two back to back episodes following the life of Zoey Johnson (Yara Shahidi) with the rest of the gang. Besides blessing viewers with the return of the show, Freeform is also aiming to help pay off overdue student loans, Complex reports.
The network has joined forces with scholarship app Scholly (made largely popular with a Mark Cuban-supported victory on the reality competition show Shark Tank) to pay a reported $125,000 in outstanding student loan debt for current students and college graduates. Starting today, eligible candidates have until Thursday, January 31 to enroll to win. With the show’s return, Freeform launched an initiative to help ease the stress that comes with paying off student loans and dodging Sallie Mae phone calls. For more information on how to sign up for the opportunity, visit Scholly’s website. The winner will be announced at the 2019 Freeform Summit.
In the past, Shahidi–who is also a student at Harvard University studying sociology and African-American Studies–has been very vocal about the change she wants to see in education and how young people consume pivotal current events. “My dream of dreams is to create some form of alternate curriculum that is inclusive of all people,” she told The Hollywood Reporter last year.
“The knowledge disparity stems from the fact that news isn’t marketed to me and my peers,” she added. “It’s as though it doesn’t pertain to us, even though half of these policies that are being implemented will affect us. We know people who are immigrants, we know people who are undocumented.”
The masses are waiting for tonight’s Grown-ish comeback is an understatement, after a sneak-peak Season 2 trailer from last year showcased the cast paying homage to classic college show A Different World. Here’s a clip of the trailer below. Grown-ish airs at 8 p.m.