The Kansas Board of Regents has unanimously approved a plan that would freeze state university tuition costs for Kansas residents for the 2009-2010 academic year. The plan, which would also address important campus deferred building maintenance projects across the state, will be possible if the Legislature limits Fiscal Year 2010 higher education budget reductions to no more than 7%, and the State receives higher education-related funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
The Board’s plan would allocate $9.6 million in federal stimulus funds to the state’s public higher education institutions for deferred building maintenance projects. In Fiscal Year 2010, the Board’s plan would allocate $40 million in federal stimulus funds to the state’s public higher education institutions for deferred building maintenance projects and tuition cost mitigation, which would make the one-year state university tuition freeze for Kansas residents possible.
I fully support this plan. Facing a harsh financial forecast, a tuition freeze will help thousands of Kansas families afford to send their kids to college without breaking the bank. Addressing important deferred maintenance projects at our state universities and community colleges will also stimulate the economy by creating new, high-paying jobs for local workers.