WKU discusses possible tuition hike
As some Western Kentucky University students were packing up and heading down the hill for summer break Friday, the WKU administration and Board of Regents were discussing the possibility of tuition going up.
The administration originally proposed a three percent increase but on Friday, the regents asked them to consider going up to four percent.
That would bring costs to just over $5,300 a semester for in-state students, over $13,200 for out-of-state and $13,600 for international students.
The regents did however ask the administration to not consider raising costs for online classes from $100 per credit hour to $150.
Four percent is the maximum tuition hike allowed for the 2018-19 school year per the state Council on Postsecondary Education, as there is to be no more than a six percent increase split over the next two years.
“We want to make sure higher education is available to students, so we don’t want to price ourselves so high that students can’t afford the tuition,” Director of WKU Media Relations, Bob Skipper says, “On the same page though, we have to make sure that we have enough income and enough revenue to pay our bills and offer what the students are expecting from us. We feel that WKU is a great value and that we offer a lot for the tuition that we charge, we just have to a really good job of communicating that.”
The regents will meet again on June 22nd to vote on WKU’s tuition and budget.
