HARTFORD, Conn. — Costs for some students attending the state's 12 community colleges will go up by $112 per semester starting in the fall, officials recently said.
The Board of Regents for Higher Education voted last week to hike up tuition and mandatory fees $224 per year, or $112 per semester, for full-time students who pay out of pocket. In addition, more than $2 million of additional institutional aid will be available for students. This is the first time in three years that tuition is going up.
“None of us ever want to raise tuition,” Connecticut State Colleges and Universities President Terrence Cheng said in a press release.
According to Cheng, approximately 70% of community college students attend without paying a cent of out-of-pocket costs. That means for many students, 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.
The Board of Regents still projects a more than $250 million budget shortfall between FY22 and FY23.
"In order to continue their work as the highest quality, most affordable and accessible higher education options in Connecticut, we will need a significant state investment, the Board said in a statement.
The tuition changes also make more than $2 million of additional institutional aid available for students.
CSCU told legislators last week that 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.
Doug Stewart is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dstewart@fox61.com.
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