Mundelein High School not raising student fees

Parents of Mundelein High School students won't have to dig deeper to pay for their kids' extracurricular activities, driver education classes or basic registration ahead of the 2010-11 term.

For the fourth consecutive year, the school board this week voted to hold traditional student fees steady. That means the cost for participating in sports, choir, band or other programs won't go up.

Parking fees will remain constant, too, as will the cost of a yearbook.

Although government agencies throughout the region have been struggling for revenue in recent years because of the recession, Mundelein High officials said they didn't want to balance their budget by further burdening local families.

"We need to make other adjustments within our budget to cover the costs," Superintendent Jody Ware said.

The fees range from $50 for a yearbook to $325 for show choir participation.

The fees last increased ahead of the 2007-08 school year.

"There has to be some accountability by (the) administration to make adjustments in other areas of the budget rather than raise fees in this economy," Ware said.

The only fee that will increase next year is the in-district rate for summer school, which will jump to $150 per class, up from $140. The cost for out-of-district students will remain $225.

The money the school could have generated by raising fees $5 or $10 each wouldn't make much of a dent in the district's $33 million budget - but it really could have hurt some families, officials said.

"That could make an enormous difference to some family that's got one or two parents (who are unemployed) and is having trouble making ends meet," board Vice President Vicky Kennedy said. "It's not worth it."

Officials at other area high school districts also are holding the line on fees because of the economy.

The Antioch-Lake Villa Area High School District 117 board is set to discuss student fees next week, Superintendent Jay Sabatino said, and they'll likely remain the same for the 2010-11 year.

"Increasing fees in this economic environment would be a tough sell unless increased services (or) goods were involved," Sabatino said.

Fees aren't going up at either Libertyville or Vernon Hills high schools, either.

"We have not raised our fees in some time and will not be increasing fees for the 2010-2011 school year," Libertyville-Vernon Hills Area High School District 128 spokeswoman Mary Todoric said. "The district would only increase fees when absolutely necessary. We would be very reluctant to do so in our current economy."

Student fees at Warren Township High School District 121 haven't increased since the 2006-07 term, spokeswoman Carolyn Waller said.

"Fees can only be raised so high to cover the cost of those using the service, even in good economic times," she said. "There is eventually a tipping point where students stop participating because of the fee, or you see an influx of fee waiver applications."

But such fees have risen at some Lake County schools. At Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, the cost for textbooks went up $5 to $180 and driver education rose $10 to $270 this year, spokesman Jim Conrey said.

The price increases reflect increases in the cost of the materials, vehicle maintenance and gasoline, he said.

Fees for the 2010-11 term haven't been set yet, Conrey said.