The IVCC Board of Trustees decided Feb. 12 to raise tuition for the 2015-2016 school year by 7.2 percent ($8) by summer semester of 2015.

This increase will make tuition and fees rise to $119 per credit hour.

Early Entry College tuition (dual credit class) will also increase by 75 percent of the standard tuition rate. The board also decided that fees for 122 courses will increase while 47 other course fees will decrease and an assignment of fees to two existing courses.

“A tuition increase that results in IVCC remaining below the state average for community colleges and significantly below tuition rates at the public four-year institutions is far more desirable than a reduction in programs or services that are critical to student success,” President Jerry Corcoran commented.

The 2015 fiscal average tuition in Illinois is $118.77 but school officials predict that number to increase as state funding decreases.

IVCC is funded 40 percent by property taxes, 10 percent by the state and the rest is funded through student’s tuition. In years prior state funding has been as high as 33 percent and recently has decreased by $52,213 from 2014 to 2015.

“The reason for the recommended increase was because of declining state revenues and a drop in the district’s equalized assessed valuation,” Corcoran stated. “In other words, two of the three primary sources of revenues for operating expenses are on the decline.”

The cost for a full-time student taking 12 credit hours will be $1,428 a semester.

“In order to continue the education and programs I find it [the increase] necessary,” Cheryl Roelfsema, vice president for business and finance, stated.

She also continued to say that IVCC is 28 out of all community colleges in the state for tuition and even with the increase the college believes it will continue to stay in this spot.