FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - The University of California is launching a 4-year, $1 billion fundraising drive to help middle-class students pay for college.

UC President Mark Yudof announced the ambitious effort Friday at Sunnyside High School in Fresno, a city where need is among the greatest. He dubbed it Project You Can.

Under Yudof's plan, students with family incomes of $70,000 or less would pay no fees.

Yudof told the crowd of cheering teenagers at the school that income should not be a barrier to students who meet the UC system's rigorous academic requirements. He said at UC "we're in the opportunity business."

The announcement comes as the Board of Regents is set to meet next month to consider raising tuition by 32 percent for most students. That hike would follow a 9.3 percent fee hike approved in May.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.