CSCU Board Set to Vote on Tuition Hikes at Universities

Thousands of college students are facing potentially paying higher costs to go to school in Connecticut.

On Thursday, education leaders are set to vote on tuition hikes for four state universities: Central, Eastern, Western and Southern Connecticut State University.

That does not include UConn.

“It’s frustrating. It’s annoying. It just keeps happening,” said Adriana Mulet, a junior at Central Connecticut State University.

And the news comes just as many can now apply for federal student debt forgiveness.

“It’s pretty bittersweet. Like one day, we are getting our loans helped and relieved and now we are having our tuition rise again,” said Emilia Dugas, CCSU sophomore.

At a meeting in Hartford on Thursday, the Connecticut State Colleges & Universities Board of Regents is set to vote on new tuition and fees for state universities.

For the systemwide average for in-state undergraduate, commuter students would see their costs go up about $350 to $12,847 for the 2023-24 school year. Resident students would pay more than $800 more for a total of $27,385.

“It just makes me feel like we’re struggling even more, like they are not giving us a break at all,” Mulet said.

While CSCU deferred any comment until after the vote, a report for the board claims the proposal balances keeping college affordable for students, covering increased costs, including for wages, and the impact of inflation on expenses.

“Our faculty, staff and students are standing together to say that raising tuition is the wrong idea,” said Seth Freeman, Congress of CT Community Colleges president.

The union represents staff and faculty at community colleges.

Freeman is also a professor at Capitol Community College where a rally is planned for Thursday and where people will speak out against the already proposed tuition hikes and ones that could be coming for the community colleges.

“The other solutions fundamentally involve getting more support from the legislature and increasing the investment our state provides to public higher education in our state,” Freeman said.

Thursday’s board meeting starts at 10 a.m. at CSCU offices in Hartford. It will also be streamed online.