Tuition costs rise at Walters State

Walters State Community College president Jack Campbell said he regrets that his students, as well as those at other state two-year colleges, will have to pay an additional $325 in tuition per year, bringing the total amount to around $1,031 per semester or $2,062 for a year. “While we empathize with students and regret that they will be charged more, I support fully the decision by the Board of Regents to increase maintenance fees, which will preserve the academic integrity of our higher education institutions and protect access for our students,” Campbell said. Anticipating a net loss of over 30 faculty and staff positions, Campbell outlined strategies in March for dealing with Walters State’s share of a $102 million statewide higher education budget cut. The 2003-2004 higher education cuts were announced earlier this year in a Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) news release and were included in Gov. Bredesen’s budget address. TBR CEO, Chancellor Charles Manning, has indicated that Walters State’s share of next year’s cut in operating expenses will be $1,487,800 representing a nine percent overall reduction. The college has been advised that it should consider this to be a permanent reduction in its base appropriation and, therefore, it should be accomplished by reducing recurring operating expenses rather than by making one-time reductions. In June, The TBR Committee on Finance and Business Operations recommended a tuition increase of 14 percent for all TBR institutions. “While we wouldn’t expect most students to look at it this way, this tuition increase actually would do less harm to students than a smaller increase or none at all. A 14 percent increase would let us add back 1,578 course sections that otherwise would not have been available,” said Charles Manning, Chancellor of the Tennessee Board of Regents. Manning said particularly for students nearing graduation, and with very specific courses required for completion, lack of availability of a needed course can add as much as a year to the time needed to earn a degree. At a tuition increase of 14 percent, the gross additional revenue generated at TBR institutions is estimated to be about $50.6 million.    Campbell said at an institution as complex as Walters State, with nearly 6,000 credit students, 4,000 continuing education and job training students, and some 650 employees, it would be impractical to itemize all of the cost cutting strategies that have been identified. Current plans include a net reduction of 11 administrative and 15 support staff positions throughout the college, Campbell said, and the tuition increase is expected to help the college balance the budget. “The increase will allow us to provide more opportunities in the form of quality programs and services to the citizens of our service area, particularly to prospective and currently enrolled students,” Campbell said. The Tennessee Board of Regents is the nation’s sixth largest higher education system, governing 45 post-secondary educational institutions. The TBR system includes six universities, 13 two-year colleges and 26 technology centers, providing programs in 90 of Tennessee’s 95 counties to over 180,000 students.