Council seeks ways to cut college tuition

With tuition likely to rise as colleges face state budget cuts of up to 15 percent, the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia yesterday adopted a report outlining strategies for making school more affordable.

The action came as the council heard what SCHEV Executive Director Daniel J. LaVista termed a "sobering reflection" on the financial situation facing state colleges and universities.

University of Virginia President John T. Casteen told SCHEV that U.Va.'s long-term pool endowment dropped to $3.9 billion by Nov. 30, from a high of $5.1 billion in June.

But Casteen, noting that it was the recession of the early 1990s that gave rise to U.Va.'s endowment, said the downturn can be a motivator. "Crises can beget opportunities," he said.

The council also heard a report on state plans to pare nearly $212 million from college operating budgets and eliminate the Tuition Moderation Incentive Fund that encouraged schools to hold down tuition.

The affordability report acknowledges that tuition will likely rise to offset the loss of state funds, but it says a portion of those increases should be dedicated to need-based financial aid for in-state students.

The report says schools should use 5 percent to 30 percent of tuition increases for aid. But the report is advisory -- it would be up to the boards of visitors to implement those recommendations.

Called "Toward Affordability," the report also recommends better marketing for the Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program as an inducement for high school students to get better grades.

Alan Edwards, SCHEV's policy studies director, said the goal would be to reach high school students who aren't aware such assistance is available. Because they don't think they have the means to go to college, they often don't work hard enough in school and fail to meet the threshold for qualifying for the assistance.

Increasing the number of students who obtain degrees is important for the state to remain competitive globally, the report says. Virginia must increase the number of degrees awarded annually by 28 percent by 2025 to keep pace.

In other action yesterday, SCHEV gave provisional certification for a new private, for-profit university. South University is building a $10 million school in Glen Allen. Provisional certification will allow the university to begin soliciting enrollment before construction is completed in August.
Contact Karin Kapsidelis at (804) 649-6119 or .