The Trenton Times published the following article on February 21, 2o13. To read the full article, click here.

Mercer County Community College board agrees to tuition increase

By Jenna Pizzi/The Times of Trenton 
on February 21, 2013 at 8:38 PM, updated February 21, 2013 at 8:39 PM

WEST WINDSOR — The Mercer County Community College board of trustees has unanimously approved an increase in tuition and a technology fee, both of which will go into effect this summer.

The board met tonight to hear the proposal from college President Patricia Donohue and to hold a public hearing regarding the $4 increase per credit hour. No one from the public spoke about the increase at the meeting, but several board members expressed their interest in keeping the cost of credits as low as possible for students.

The $4 increase would raise the cost per credit hour at the college to $142 per credit hour for in-county students — an approximately 2.9 percent increase, Donohue said. A student taking a course load of 12 credits, for example, would see a $48 increase.

“The board takes it seriously, these tuition increases,” said board member Anthony Inverso. “We’re not here just to pass costs on to students.”

Donohue said that the college is getting $2 million per year less in state aid than it received in the ‘90s.

“We need to make sure our budget is balanced,” Inverso said. “We are in difficult times right now with enrollment and expenses and we need to balance that.”

The college has seen a slight decrease in enrollment in the last few years, board members said, urging the administration to focus on nontraditional revenue sources and programs that can help increase revenue in different ways.

The college relies on revenue from the college radio station and conference center to offset some costs, Donohue said. She added that while the savings will not be reflected in the forthcoming budget, the college will also see energy savings associated with the solar farm that is currently being installed on the West Windsor campus.

Donohue said in addition to revenues, the administration is examining all of the college’s expenses to determine where savings can be found in the college’s approximately $62 million budget.

“The budget still needs additional work on our part to make additional cuts,” she said.

Tuition costs for the college are average compared with other county colleges across the state, Donohue said. According to information provided to the board by the administration, Union County Community College is the most expensive in the state at approximately $172 per credit hour while Burlington and Ocean counties are the least expensive. The average cost per credit hour at community colleges in the state is $142.

Donohue said the college also takes into consideration the cost to attend other colleges and universities in Mercer County. She compared MCCC with three other schools: Rider University charges $1,368 per credit; The College of New Jersey, $613 per credit, and Rutgers, $545 per credit.

“We are still the best show in town,” said board member William Coleman Jr.
Donohue said it is important to her and the administration that tuition and fees remain affordable.