Will HBCUs Be Spared Large Tuition Increases?

Howard University students face tuition increases of 6.5 percent for undergraduates and 7 percent for graduate students.

Students at many state-supported colleges and universities face increases in tuition this fall as state governments, grappling with budget shortfalls from the national economic slowdown, reduce aid to their institutions. But if some examples from the mid-Atlantic region are any indication, at black colleges, tuition rates might go up more slowly than the average.

Students at Bowie State University and Coppin State University are part of the University System of Maryland. USM projects that the tuition increases at its 11 colleges and universities will average 14 percent. The average increase could rise to 20 percent if additional cuts are made to the USM budget by the Maryland Legislature. Abu Kamal, associate vice president of administration and finance at Coppin State, said his institution has proposed to the Board of Regents that its tuition rise by only 9 percent.

"We had no other choice but to increase tuition because we had a $2 million budget cut over last year," Kamal said. However, "Students will not bear the full burden of the budget cuts. The tuition increase will contribute approximately $300,000 of the $2 million shortfall."

Neighboring Morgan State University, also a state funded institution but not a member of the USM, already has decided to increase tuition by 9 percent for the upcoming academic year.

Last year, the university's board approved a 5.5 percent increase for the 2003-04 academic year. Ray Vollmer, associate vice president for finance and management at Morgan State, said the Baltimore-based historically black college was forced to add 3.5 percent – for a total increase of 9 percent -- because of increased costs and declining state support.

This means Maryland residents will now pay slightly over $2,500 per semester, while out-of-state students will have tuition bills exceeding $6,000.

"We are committed at the university to making education affordable to our students," Vollmer said. "Last academic year, we increased tuition only by 2 percent. While other schools in the state of Maryland had mid-year tuition increases, we stayed true to our 2 percent commitment."

USM Chancellor William E. Kirwan, reporting to state legislators, said tuition increases, layoffs and other cost reductions are necessary to cushion the impact of a $120 billion budget cut for the 2003-04 fiscal year, which began July 1.

"We are concerned about our ability to absorb further cuts without seriously impacting institutional quality and student services, which will pose a major setback in our national progress," Kirwan said.

"It will become increasingly difficult to continue to assure quality, at an affordable price, for our current students, and nearly impossible to meet that standard for the growing number of high school graduates who will be set to attend our institutions in the very near future."

Vollmer said that to offset the deficit brought on by the reduction in state support, Morgan has made budgetary adjustments by slightly reducing the number of non-academic staff. No cuts have been made in the academic areas, but if the economy continues to flounder, faculty might face increased workloads and larger class sizes.

"This will be a last resort, as we do not want to dilute the quality of education," Vollmer said. Private institutions are not immune from tuition woes. At Howard University in nearby Washington, D.C., tuition increases for the fall will be 6.5 percent for undergraduates and 7 percent for graduate students.

Henry Jackson, Howard’s chief financial officer, told The Hilltop that the increases were necessary because of the rise in energy costs, the cost of new technology and increased operating costs.

Lakia Gray, a rising junior political science major, says tuition increases are understandable in light of national economic circumstances. "I think a tuition increase may be necessary but I think we should be better informed about how our money will be allocated," Gray said.

According to United Negro College Fund, an organization that supports historically black colleges and their students, tuition increases are a constant challenge. The organization's data compiled by Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute, showed that tuition increases for the 39 UNCF institutions, all private institutions, fluctuated the over the past five years.

Between 1997 and 1999 there was a 7 percent increase, while in 1999-2000, tuition decreased by 1 percent. The largest increase between 1997 and 2002 occurred in the 2000-01 academic year, when tuition rose an average of 12 percent. Last year's increase was approximately 8 percent.

For more information on Chancellor Kirwan's report to General Assembly: Impact of FY 2004 Budget Cuts visit http://www.usmd.edu/IndexNB.html.

Kerry-Ann Hamilton is a 2003 graduate of Howard University. She was a former campus editor of The Hilltop and will be pursuing a master’s degree in International Communications at American University.

Posted July 14, 2003