District 214 fees will increase, then freeze

Registration fees in Northwest Suburban High School District 214 will be going up each year for the next few years but will be frozen for the duration of a student’s high school career.

The proposal approved unanimously by the District 214 school board on Thursday night differs from one presented a few weeks ago that would have incrementally raised fees for all students each year over a number of years. Officials said they made the change to better help families plan their finances.

A student starting as a freshman will pay the same registration fee, co-curricular fee and parking fee for each year in the district, said Superintendent David Schuler.

For all district students in 2013-14, student registration will be $460, the co-curricular fee will be $65 and the parking fee will be $190.

For new students in 2014-15, the student registration fee will be $490, the co-curricular fee will be $80, and the parking fee will be $210.

For new students in 2015-16, the student registration fee will be $520, the co-curricular fee will be $95, and the parking fee will be $220.

If registration fees are paid before July 31 of each year, the registration fee will be discounted $25. The fee for the behind-the-wheel portion of drivers education will remain at $350.

Schuler said the fee increases are necessary because of increasing costs and decreasing state funding.

“This is a sign of the times. If we are going to have our funding cut by the state, we have to make it up somewhere,” board President Jim Perkins agreed.

The registration fee includes such things as textbooks, school calendars, one physical education shirt per year, one physical education lock, a pass to regular season home activities and the school newspaper.

According to board documents, the district did a survey in January to examine student registration fees at surrounding and similar districts — and found that District 214’s fees are still less than many others’.

Board members noted that there could be situations where families have multiple students in District 214 and are paying different fee levels for their students, but they said they will assess how this fee-freezing plan is working after three years.