College mulling fee increases

BENTONVILLE -- A set of fee increases proposed by Northwest Arkansas Community College administrators would cost the typical full-time student an extra $125 per year, according to Debi Buckley, chief financial officer.

The college also is considering reducing out-of-state tuition from $175 to $125 per credit hour with the hope of boosting enrollment. In-district students -- those living within the Bentonville and Rogers school districts -- pay $75 per credit hour. Out-of-district students pay $122.50. The college is not considering raising either of those rates.

Fee increase proposals

Northwest Arkansas Community College administrators have proposed the following changes to the student fee structure for the 2015-16 school year.

Fee DescriptionBasisCurrent RateProposed RateProjected New Revenue

Learning supportper credit hour$8.50$10$179,832

Technologyper credit hour$10.75$11.25$19,160

Applicationper application$10$20$51,415

Transcriptper transcriptnone$5$45,000

Payment planper payment plan$25$30$27,280

Library resourcesper credit hour$1.50$2$74,540

Securityper credit hour$1.50$2.50$149,081

Source: Northwest Arkansas Community College

Buckley presented the information to the Board of Trustees on Thursday as part of the college's budget development for fiscal 2016, which begins July 1. The board didn't act on the proposals, but is expected to vote on the fee increases at its next regular meeting April 13.

A vote on the budget is expected in May. A draft budget for next year shows the college spending $40.7 million, about $431,000 less than this year's budget.

The college is developing its budget based on the assumption enrollment will decline 3 percent and there will be no additional state money, Buckley said. The number of credit hours being taken at the college has declined from a high of 173,282 in 2011 to 153,692 this school year.

Community colleges across the country are experiencing similar enrollment and credit-hour drops, said Evelyn Jorgenson, college president.

Board member Keven Anderson asked Jorgenson whether she thought the numbers would continue to decline.

"I think we're close to the bottom, but there's no real way of knowing," Jorgenson said.

The budget proposal for the 2015-16 school year includes increases of six fees resulting in additional revenue of $501,000 in the next fiscal year, according to Buckley's projections.

The learning support fee, for example, would be raised from $8.50 to a proposed $10 per credit hour, bringing the college an additional $180,000. All of that money would go toward student support services, specifically the reading, writing, math and tutoring centers, according to Ricky Tompkins, vice president for learning.

An increase in the college's security fee from $1.50 to $2.50 also is being proposed. Ethan Beckcom, risk management director, said part of that increase was meant to cover an expected rise in liability insurance costs if the Legislature had passed a bill allowing staff members to carry concealed handguns on campus.

House Bill 1077 made it to the Senate but died there, according to its sponsor, state Rep. Charlie Collins, R-Fayetteville, after the legislative session ended Thursday. Beckcom said if the bill didn't pass, he would reduce his fee increase request by 50 cents.

The college implemented its security fee in 2013. Board member Joe Spivey questioned whether so much money was necessary for security.

Beckcom said the money goes toward more than just the campus police force. It also pays for things such as psychological counseling services on campus and emergency notifications. The fee increase will "absolutely" increase safety, he said.

Other fees targeted for increases include the technology, application, payment plan and library resources fees.

When asked why the college would like to raise fees rather than tuition, Jorgenson said there is a specific reason for raising each fee. Understanding the reasons for those fee increases is easier for the public to understand than a lump increase in tuition, she said.

"When people know that's how that money is going to be used, it makes more sense to them," she said. "It's always difficult to raise fees or tuition. We know it's difficult for our students. But we also know we have to provide them a quality education to prepare them for the next step. We have to maintain that quality."

The college has worked hard to reduce expenses, Buckley said. That's involved analyzing the benefits of all programs compared to their costs, offering retirement incentives and temporarily suspending scheduled compensation increases.

In addition to fee increases, administrators are proposing a new fee of $5 to process each transcript request. That fee would generate a projected $45,000.

"I believe last year we produced 20,000 transcripts," Buckley said. "A lot of personnel time and postage is involved in these."

Some transcript requests take only a few minutes to process. Others can take 30 minutes or more, said Todd Kitchen, vice president for learner support services.

Daniel Shewmaker, board vice chairman, said he thought the college should provide all graduates one copy of their transcript for free.

By cutting the tuition rate for out-of-state students, the college hopes to broaden its reach for students. It also could attract more undocumented immigrants who are required by state law to pay out-of-state rates, administrators and board members said.

The cut would cost the college nearly $300,000 in revenue. To make that up, the college would need to attract an additional 98 full-time equivalent students, Buckley said.

"Can we get 98 out-of-state students?" Shewmaker asked.

"We'll do our best," Kitchen said. "We'll have to work hard to get them here."

Crowder College in Neosho, Mo., is about 40 miles north of Northwest Arkansas Community College. It charges out-of-state students $113 per credit hour.

Wendy Echeverria, Student Government Association president, said the out-of-state tuition reduction would be great.

"I actually have a bunch of friends who have left NWACC because they can't afford it because they are undocumented," she said. "If the out-of-state tuition would drop, I think they would come back."

NW News on 04/03/2015

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