Harper forgoes tuition hike for next year
Consider it a message of encouragement.
Harper College trustees, citing the deepening recession, have unanimously voted to freeze in-district tuition for the 2009-10 school year.
"This is our way of saying we understand that many of our students are stretched pretty thin financially," board Chairwoman Laurie Stone said. "Maybe this will help some to stay the course with education."
In-district students will continue to pay $90 per credit hour.
For the last several years, the Palatine school has increased tuition annually by $4 to $6 per credit hour to compensate for a drop in state funding, successful commercial property tax appeal refunds and increased operating costs.
This year, state funding will be at its lowest level since the inception of community colleges in Illinois in the mid-1960s, Harper officials said.
Though every $1 of tuition increases brings approximately $300,000 of revenue to Harper, Stone said the college has enough resources to hold the line for a year.
"Let's hope by next year, the economy will have begun to turn," Stone said.
Nondistrict students will pay $324 per credit hour, or a $2 increase. Both out-of-state and international students will pay $407 per credit hour, or an $8 increase.
At the same time, many area Catholic schools such as St. James School in Arlington Heights and Benedictine University in Lisle decided to maintain tuition levels in the upcoming academic year.
In Des Plaines, Oakton Community College students will have to dig a little deeper. For the third straight year, in-district tuition is going up by $2 per credit hour, bringing the 2009-10 total to $86 per credit hour.
"It's still a value and very affordable for that entry-level student that wants to go to school," Oakton spokesman Bill Paige said.
In-state, out-of-district tuition at Oakton will rise about $10 to $272 per credit hour, while out-of-state students will pay nearly $12 more at $329 per credit hour.
• Staff Writer Madhu Krishnamurthy contributed to this report.