HOPE SMITH
editor-in-chief
collegian.editor@tccd.edu
The newly proposed TCC 2023-24 fiscal year budget will raise tuition for students another $5 per credit hour.
Approved by the Board of Trustees during the Aug. 17 meeting, this increase will begin in the spring of 2024 and take tuition from $64 to $69 per semester hour.
TCC ranked number two among community colleges in its district as of 2022, according to the tuition rate and revenue analysis presented by Chief Operating Officer Susan Alanis.
Along with this decision, dual credit students will receive free tuition starting this semester.
House Bill 8, which was passed this summer by Gov. Greg Abbott, allows TCC to implement the use of the Financial Aid for Swift Transfer program (FAST).
In a press release statement, it said TCC has around 60% of dual enrollment students are economically disadvantaged.
Paired with FAST, which will offer $55 per credit hour to TCC for economically disadvantaged students enrolled in dual credit, Alanis said waiving all dual credit tuition would be beneficial for two reasons.
“We think it’s good policy in terms of encouraging early completion and progress of students and gaining credentials that will make them productive members of our workforce,” she said. “Also, just the administrative challenge and communication challenge of trying to parse through students who may have different points when you would know whether they would [qualify].”
Chancellor Elva LeBlanc, who supports the decision to waive the dual credit tuition, expressed her gratitude for the decision.
“[SE President] Bill Coppola is smiling, because he and I have been wanting to waive dual enrollment tuition for a decade, and so we’re patiently waiting and the day has come so thank you very much for that support and support of our students,” she said.
The board also discussed the new property tax rate of 11.217 cents per $100, a 1.8 cent reduction from the current rate.
It was presented to the board that this newly proposed rate would save taxpayers $44 million in taxes. This budget considers requests made in the spring to rebalance the college funding.
Laura Pritchett, the newest member to the board of trustees, emphasized the importance of striving for an efficient budget.
“I did just want to draw attention to the fact that although the tax rate has decreased, that the overall revenue has increased for the college,” she said. “I just want to make sure that we continue the path forward with taking a look at everything, really on a line by line item, and making sure that we do not have any inefficiencies within the budget and that anything that is in the budget is really something that should be there, without impacting the quality of education that we’re providing for the students and for the community.”
