FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 9, 2012
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Contact: Lauren Gutshall
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APSCUF PRESIDENT COMMENTS ON STATE SYSTEM THREE PERCENT TUITION INCREASE
HARRISBURG – Today the Board of Governors for the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) unanimously approved a 3 percent – $188 – tuition increase for the 2012-13 academic year. Resident undergraduate tuition will increase from $6,240 to $6,428. The board also increased the student technology fee by $10 to $358 per year.
Dr. Steve Hicks, president of the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF), stated that while the board acted responsibly to address the financial needs of the universities, it also must be cognizant of budgetary strains on current and prospective students.
“We need to make sure that residents of the Commonwealth continue to have access to educational opportunities,” Hicks said. “An additional $200 a year does not seem like a lot, but many of our students are already struggling to afford the cost of college.”
Governor Corbett recently signed a state budget that included level funding for the State System. As a result, the Chancellor indicated at a press conference that PASSHE would keep tuition increases “as low as possible.”
“I am pleased that the board voted to keep the tuition increase below the rate of inflation. Student affordability must be balanced with the necessary resources to fund academic programs and student instruction,” Hicks noted. “This increase should ensure that universities retain the programs, and the faculty to run them, that students want and need.”
The 3 percent tuition increase will leave a $15.8 million gap in the State System’s budget. Last year’s budget gap, after a 7.5 percent tuition increase, was over $30 million.
The Association of Pennsylvania State College & University Faculties represents more than 6,000 faculty members and coaches at Pennsylvania’s 14 state-owned universities.