Tuition Rates to increase for fall's incoming freshmen
Nicholas Francis
Issue date: 4/28/09 Section: News
Under the new policy, students who have not exceeded their four-year limit will continue to have the option to take up to three extra credit hours per semester at no additional cost, but incoming freshmen will not be offered the same opportunity.
Another expense resulting from the Board of Regents recent decisions comes in the form of the $75 "Institutional Fee."
The fee, which was implemented at the beginning of the spring 2009 semester, was originally planned to be a one-time fee that would be used to offset the effects of statewide budget cuts.
However, following the passage of the state legislature's drastically reduced budget for the 2010 fiscal year, it has become apparent to the Board of Regents that the University System of Georgia will be forced to continue its reliance on funds received directly from its students to help support the state's educational system.
According to the Board of Regents, the Institutional Fee will continue to be added to the cost of college education statewide until further notice.
The cost of the institutional fee applies to all students, whether they are covered by the Guaranteed Tuition Plan or if they are newly entering freshmen. Also, the fee cannot be paid for by proceeds received from the HOPE scholarship.
With such an emphasis being placed on the economic aspects of college education, Augusta State University is focused on finding the best use of its own drastically reduced budget.
"We have tried to make sure that we have reduced costs in a way that doesn't affect the quality in the classroom," said Dan Whitfield, vice president of business operations at Augusta State. "This past year we have seen budget cuts of $3 million, and we will also have additional budget cuts of another $500,000 in the new fiscal year."
According to Whitfield, funding from donations and private foundations, which constitutes two-thirds of the school's non-state money, has also been greatly decreased.
"The funds that we receive from the foundations to fund some of our endowed faculty chairs have been impacted by activity in the stock market," Whitfield said. "The economic downturn is really hitting everybody."
Another expense resulting from the Board of Regents recent decisions comes in the form of the $75 "Institutional Fee."
The fee, which was implemented at the beginning of the spring 2009 semester, was originally planned to be a one-time fee that would be used to offset the effects of statewide budget cuts.
However, following the passage of the state legislature's drastically reduced budget for the 2010 fiscal year, it has become apparent to the Board of Regents that the University System of Georgia will be forced to continue its reliance on funds received directly from its students to help support the state's educational system.
According to the Board of Regents, the Institutional Fee will continue to be added to the cost of college education statewide until further notice.
The cost of the institutional fee applies to all students, whether they are covered by the Guaranteed Tuition Plan or if they are newly entering freshmen. Also, the fee cannot be paid for by proceeds received from the HOPE scholarship.
With such an emphasis being placed on the economic aspects of college education, Augusta State University is focused on finding the best use of its own drastically reduced budget.
"We have tried to make sure that we have reduced costs in a way that doesn't affect the quality in the classroom," said Dan Whitfield, vice president of business operations at Augusta State. "This past year we have seen budget cuts of $3 million, and we will also have additional budget cuts of another $500,000 in the new fiscal year."
According to Whitfield, funding from donations and private foundations, which constitutes two-thirds of the school's non-state money, has also been greatly decreased.
"The funds that we receive from the foundations to fund some of our endowed faculty chairs have been impacted by activity in the stock market," Whitfield said. "The economic downturn is really hitting everybody."
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