Posted on April 5, 2007
Students looking to save some cash by taking summer courses through the Virginia Community College System might be in for a surprise.
As part of a six-year plan, the VCCS State Governing Board voted in March to increase tuition 6 percent for the next school year. The policy to increase tuition between 5 and 7 percent each year, which began three years ago, will continue into 2009.
“The idea behind the model is to help families plan,” said Glenn DuBois, chancellor of VCCS.
By expecting an increase, community college students and their families can prepare accordingly, DuBois said.
“Tuition is increasing each year to avoid spiking tuition dramatically,” he said.
Most students looking to take cheap summer courses don’t view the increase as an issue.
“As long as it is still cheaper than a four-year university, I don’t see the problem,” junior John Lantz said.
And according to DuBois, community college is still a bargain.
With the new increase, the cost for an 18-credit-hour summer session is around $1,400 at schools like Blue Ridge Community College and Piedmont Virginia Community College, according to their Web sites. This is still more than $2,000 less than a four-year university like JMU, which would be around $3,500 for the same amount of credit hours, according to the school’s Web site.
“Compared to other schools, it’s still a good deal,” DuBois said.
Despite the increase, enrollment continues to grow. Last year’s enrollment was up about 6,000 new students, according to DuBois, which is almost double the number of incoming freshmen at JMU in 2006. While the exact number of students coming from a four-year university for the VCCS summer session is unknown, DuBois said: “It’s not a small number.”
But some students and their families worry about what will happen in the future if these increases continue each year.
“While some increase can be expected over the years, eventually you’ll end up with a cost similar to that of your regular school,” junior Sarah Aldridge said. “That defeats the purpose of going to a community college for summer classes.”
Currently, the state pays two-thirds of the cost of attending a VCCS school while the Virginia family pays the remainder, DuBois said. This figure is what the Board based the model on three years ago.
With recent decreases in state funding and the need to keep up with technology, community colleges now have to start looking for a solution for the disparity.
“Like JMU, VCCS schools are under funded,” DuBois said.
The small increases in tuition should help with the difference and keep community colleges a good buy, he said.
Lantz agreed.
“It’s still better to go a community college since you are saving like 90 percent of the cost,” he said.
