Tuition will be going up at the state’s 12 community colleges.
Connecticut State Colleges and Universities said the Board of Regents for Higher Education has voted to set tuition and fees and tuition and mandatory fees will increase by $224 per year, or $112 per semester, for full-time students who pay out of pocket.
“None of us ever want to raise tuition,” Connecticut State Colleges and Universities President CSCU President Terrence Cheng said in a statement.
“However, I want to note that this does not mean that everyone’s bill will increase. For many, there will be no increase at all. Students who are eligible for the PACT program, for instance, will continue to go to school tuition and fee-free. The same goes for students who receive full Pell funding. All in all, approximately 70 percent of community college students attend without paying a cent of out-of-pocket costs. That will continue,” he said.
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Cheng said the board of regents has not increased community college tuition in three years and they will continue to do everything in their power to ensure that the system’s financial challenges do not fall onto the backs of students.
He said Connecticut State Colleges and Universities still projects a more than $250 million budget shortfall between FY22 and FY23.
“In order for our institutions to continue their work as the highest quality, most affordable and accessible higher education options in Connecticut, we will need a significant state investment,” Cheng said in a statement, and added that the tuition changes also make more than $2 million of additional institutional aid available for students.
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Connecticut State Colleges and Universities said the shortfall is largely driven by expected changes to SEBAC payroll and fringe benefit agreements, the state’s decennial 27th payroll, and COVID-19’s negative impact on enrollment.
