TCC regents approve tuition increase

Regents governing Tulsa Community College have approved a proposal to increase tuition by 7 percent for resident students and 9 percent for non-resident students. <br><br>The board voted unanimously on

Thursday, May 9th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Regents governing Tulsa Community College have approved a proposal to increase tuition by 7 percent for resident students and 9 percent for non-resident students.

The board voted unanimously on Wednesday for the increase, which will be one of a number of tuition increase requests that the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education must review before they take effect this fall.

Dean VanTrease, TCC president, said the higher tuition will generate about $750,000 in revenue, which about how much the school will lose as a result of lower state funding.

``We still have fixed-cost increases to deal with in addition to the cutbacks in state money, so we're not totally breaking even,'' he said.

VanTrease said TCC is expecting a surge in enrollment in the fall. He said the regents want to avoid turning away potential students even though state funding is being cut for needed academic programs.

``We're going to do all we can to make classes available to everyone, but it's going to be tough when you look at the projections for next fall's enrollment,'' he said.

Fall 2001 enrollment at TCC increased 6 percent to 20,817 full-time and part-time students. Enrollment is projected to increase 8 to 10 percent this fall, VanTrease said.

Resident TCC students can expect to pay $36.60 per credit hour beginning in the fall, while out-of-state students will pay $81.95.

TCC will join schools such as Oklahoma State University, the University of Oklahoma and Rogers State University in Claremore in seeking a tuition increase. Regents governing OSU already have approved a request for higher tuition, and OU and RSU officials are expected to follow suit this week.