Even though the level of future state budget cuts for higher education still are unsure the Crowder College Board of Governors unanimously voted to raise tuition. Dr. Alan Marble, Crowder president who sits on the board, recommended that the matter of tuition be moved to an action item instead of "first reading" in order to have tuition in place before early enrollment begins in mid April 2012.

Marble said these recommended rate increases of $4 per credit hour for in-district tuition, $5 per credit hour for in-state, and $6 per credit hour for out-of-state/international will almost make up the difference of an 8% state budget cut if enrollment numbers remain the same.

He commented that some schools statewide tried to raise tuition illegally anywhere from $4-$9, and those schools will have even larger increases when implementation is actually in place. He said Crowder has to do something to replace lost state revenue. This will help while still keeping tuition as affordable as possible for students.

When asked, Dr. Marble said although this is only a 5% increase on an 8% or more state budget cut, state funding now only provides about 17% of Crowder's total budget revenue. He said we are not close to receiving the same amount of state funding that we were receiving even 10 years ago per student FTE, and it is clear the states change in approach over time has shifted the burden of payment to the students. However, he said Crowder is making every effort to be as fair as possible to students. He added if further state withholding is made throughout the year, more drastic increases may need to be made next year to off-set the loss.

Without further discussion, a motion was made to approve the tuition increases as discussed making total tuition $77 per credit hour for in-district students, $105 per credit hour for in-state students and $134 per credit hour for out-of-state/international students.

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