BENTONVILLE -- Northwest Arkansas Community College officials hope a drastic reduction in the school's out-of-state tuition rate will spark a surge in enrollment.
The college Board of Trustees in April approved cutting the out-of-state rate from $175 to $125 per credit hour, a reduction of 28 percent. The new rate is effective this month and for the rest of the 2015-16 school year.
Out-of-state students
The number of people from outside Arkansas taking classes at Northwest Arkansas Community College is on the rise. Here are the numbers by fall semester for the past five years.
“Out of state” means those students who don’t live in Arkansas or in a county that touches Benton County, “contiguous” refers to students who live in a Missouri or Oklahoma county that borders Benton County, and “international” refers to students who are not U.S. citizens or legal residents.
Year Out of state Contiguous International Total
(percent of overall enrollment)
2010 206 56 83 345 (4.1)
2011 243 53 81 377 (4.4)
2012 318 68 90 476 (5.7)
2013 327 79 91 497 (6.2)
2014 390 72 121 583 (7.2)
Source: Northwest Arkansas Community College
Tuition for in-state students remains the same at $75 and $122.50 per credit hour for those living within the college's millage district and those outside of it, respectively.
Evelyn Jorgenson, who began her third year as college president last week, said the college's former out-of-state tuition rate seemed disproportionate to its other rates.
"We welcome and invite students to the college and frankly, we don't care where they live," Jorgenson said. "We shouldn't create disincentives for people from other states to attend."
The last time the college changed its out-of-state tuition rate before this year was in 2012, when the rate increased from $167.50 to $175 per credit hour.
The college's overall for-credit enrollment number was 8,098 last fall semester. That represents a 5 percent decrease since enrollment hit an all-time high in fall 2011.
Out-of-state enrollment, however, has been a bright spot, increasing 55 percent -- from 377 to 583 -- over the past four fall semesters. Out-of-state students represented 7.2 percent of total enrollment last fall. That number includes 121 "international" students, those who are not U.S. citizens or legal residents.
The tuition reduction means the college will need to attract 98 more out-of-state students to make up for the financial loss. That would represent a 25 percent increase from fall 2014.
"I think that's a stretch goal," said Todd Kitchen, vice president of student services. "We have great recruiters, great resources. So we're optimistic."
Jorgenson also expressed confidence the college would reach that enrollment level, though it may not be this year.
Immigrants key
Officials hope the decreased tuition rate will be especially attractive to those who entered the country without permission. They are required to pay out-of-state tuition even if they've lived in Arkansas most of their life.
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, an immigration policy announced by President Barack Obama in 2012, allows certain immigrants who entered the country before they turned 16 to receive a renewable two-year work permit and to avoid deportation.
Wendy Echeverria, who served as Student Government Association president during the 2014-15 school year, said at a college board meeting in April she knew of several people from outside the country who had dropped out of the school because they couldn't afford it anymore.
"If the out-of-state tuition drops, I think they would come back," Echeverria said. "It would be a great thing."
Cyndi Beltran of Bentonville graduated from Northwest Arkansas Community College in 2014. She's now entering her senior year at the University of Arkansas.
Beltran came to the United States from Mexico when she was 12 years old. As a non-citizen she had to pay the out-of-state rate at the college and was not eligible for state or federal aid. Some private scholarships paid for about half of her college costs, she said.
She called the college's decision to lower the tuition rate "a bold move" because of how it relates to undocumented students and the politics of immigration involved. The decision also shows the college is putting people ahead of finances, she said.
"They knew they would make a little less money. It shows they value more students over more money," Beltran said.
Competitive edge
Then there is the competition angle of the college's decision.
Crowder College, based in Neosho, Mo., opened a branch in Jane, Mo., in January 2014. The Crowder College McDonald County Center is about 2 miles from the Arkansas border and about 14 miles from Northwest Arkansas Community College's main campus. The center offers full associate's degrees in nursing, general studies and business administration, according to the school's website.
Crowder's tuition rates this fall will be $82 per credit hour for in-district students, $122 for out-of-district and out-of-state students and $164 for international students, according to the school's website. Nursing students will pay a little more than that.
Jorgenson, however, downplayed the importance of competition to the college's decision-making.
"With the population we serve, I'm not sure there's a true competitor in the area," she said.
High tuition rates for out-of-state students is not unusual. Pulaski Technical College in North Little Rock, the state's biggest two-year college, will charge out-of-state students $168 per credit hour this fall. The in-state rate will be $110, according to the school's website.
At North Arkansas College, a two-year school in Harrison, out-of-state tuition will be $180 per credit hour this fall, whereas Boone County students will pay $85 and all other Arkansas residents will pay $109, according to Micki Somers, director of public relations and marketing.
And at the University of Arkansas, undergraduates who live outside the state, including international students, will pay $677.73 per credit hour this fall. State residents will pay $234.26, according to the university's website.
Northwest Arkansas Community College has begun marketing its new tuition rate to potential students, especially through social media, said Steven Hinds, director of public relations and marketing. A Facebook message posted by the college on June 23, and another one posted Thursday, pointed out with the tuition rate change, out-of-state students could save up to $1,500 per year on tuition.
This month the college will be advertising its new rate on Univision, an American Spanish language television network, during telecasts of the Gold Cup soccer tournament, Hinds said.
The college also will promote the new rate at a new event it is hosting called Noche Universitaria para Familias Latinas, or University Night for Latin Families. The objective is to inform the Hispanic community about various higher education options in the area, according to Rubicely Hernandez, a recruiter for the college. It will be held 6-8 p.m. Thursday at the Jones Center chapel in Springdale.
The event is free and totally in Spanish. Students, parents and anyone interested in continuing their studies is welcome. Representatives of the college, University of Arkansas, and Northwest Technical Institute will provide information about admissions, financial aid, scholarships and degree plans, Hernandez said.
Dave Perozek can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @NWADaveP.
NW News on 07/06/2015