WSU approves 30% increase in tuition over 2 years

Washington State University undergraduate students will see a 14 percent tuition increase in each of the next two academic years.

The school's Board of Regents approved the increase Friday with a 6-1 vote during a meeting at the WSU Spokane campus. It's the maximum increase allowed under the new state budget.

The University of Washington is expected to approve a similar tuition increase.

In addition to the tuition increase, WSU will need to trim $54.16 million, or 10.38 percent of its budget, over the next two years. The university will see its appropriation from the state dip by more than 21 percent during the biennium, for a loss of about $112 million.

The increase in tuition is expected to bring in about $42 million. The school also will receive $16 million in one-time federal stimulus money.

"In an economic recession, the last thing you should be cutting is higher education," Francois Forgette, chair of the Board of Regents, said in a news release. "It seems counterintuitive, but we are where we are and we have to play the hand that is dealt to us."

The lone dissenting vote Friday came from student Regent Derick En'Wezoh, who said the students he's heard from oppose the tuition increase.

An average year of full-time tuition for WSU undergraduates will cost $870 more in the 2009-2010 academic year, for a total of $7,088. The cost will rise to $8,080 the following year — a compound increase of nearly 30 percent over two years.

Officials at WSU hope an increase in federal Pell grants and the Hope Tax Credit can offset some of the new costs for students and their families.

On Thursday, the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges voted unanimously in favor of a 7 percent tuition increase. The state has 34 community and technical colleges that serve 150,000 full-time students.

Board executive director Charlie Earl said that while board members were concerned about tuition getting too high, they wanted to ensure enough classes are offered for students to graduate on time, saving them money. Board members, Earl said, also took into account the federal government's increased financial aid for many students, both through Pell grants and the income tax credit.

He said 8,000 more full-time students are attending community and technical colleges this year compared with last year.

Maks Goldenshteyn: 206-464-2374 or mgoldenshteyn@seattletimes.com