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June 10, 2011

WSCC tuition going up 16 percent

State officials approve hike amid budget woes

By Trent Moore The Cullman Times

To balance state budget cuts and the loss of federal stimulus dollars this year, tuition at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville will increase by approximately 16 percent this fall.

Approved by the Alabama State Board of Education Thursday, the fee hike will increase tuition from the current rate of $92 per credit hour to $107 per credit hour for students.

The rate increase affects the entire Alabama Community College System, which includes 22 colleges and four technical schools statewide.

The move should generate more than $30 million statewide, which officials say is needed due to shortfalls in the state budget and a huge up-tick in enrollment.

“Our enrollment has increased here at Wallace State by about 26 percent, and during that time the budgets have been prorated 25.3 percent,” Wallace State President Vicki Hawsey said. “We have lost a cumulative $9.8 million, and the community college system has lost a cumulative $248 million since 2008. We can’t continue to survive, and provide a quality education, with the level of state funding we receive.”

Hawsey said it is regrettable the additional costs will fall to students, but affirmed it is necessary due to the constant funding cuts colleges have faced in recent years.

“This is just an essential tuition increase — not one we wanted, but one that is unavoidable,” she said. “This year the legislature increased university funding by $50 million, but community colleges were not increased. The funding disparity in the higher education sector grows increasingly more glaring each year. Notably, the community colleges in Alabama serve more than half of all students enrolled in higher education in the state, yet receive approximately 19 percent of higher education funding.”

The 16 percent increase should keep the local college afloat, Hawsey said, as other funding sources are scheduled to run out this fiscal year.

“At this time, we’ve projected this will provide enough funding to cover the loss of stimulus funds, which expire this year,” Hawsey said.

State school board member Mary Scott Hunter, who supported the tuition increase, said the price hike may reduce enrollment in Alabama’s community colleges, but the schools are still the best option for many students.

“Four-year colleges in Alabama can range from $300 to $450 or more per credit hour not including (other) costs,” she said. “So community colleges will remain an affordable option even with the increase.”

The last two-year college tuition increase was approved in 2009, soon after the state education budget was first prorated.



* The Associated Press contributed to this report.



* Trent Moore can be reached by e-mail at trentm@cullmantimes.com, or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 220.

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