Wednesday, March 26, 2008

A 6 Percent Increase Equals $200

Are you going to be a freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior in any Florida college next year? Maybe you’re considering going back to school to get a degree in Florida? Well, if your answer to any one of these questions is ‘Yes,’ then you need to be prepared for a
6 percent increase in your tuition.

Florida has decided to cut $185 million in recurring general revenue funds, and cut all nonrecurring dollars for the fiscal year that begins July 1. To make up for the shortfall, $168 million will come from lottery funding, lowering the cut of regular, ongoing spending from 6 percent to 1.6 percent and adding the tuition increase for higher education will help the state to almost break even.

So how much does a 6 percent increase equal? The increase equals $200 for a full-time student. Money a student could use on gas, food and other necessities. For some $200 may not sound like much, but for people already struggling to pay for college will have to face another set back.

Raising tuition is not going to solve the educational budget problems Florida has. It is only going to stop more people from going to college, or it may prolong how long it takes a person to obtain a degree. Also, raising the tuition will contribute more to student debts in Florida.

Maybe the solution to this budget problem is for the state to examine where they’re actually spending their money and cut from those areas that are less important. For instance, they could cut spending on repairing roads that were fine before they were torn up and replaced or they could cut spending on unnecessary landscaping throughout the state.

Increasing the tuition is not solving a problem, it is only creating one. Education currently is becoming a must have to survive. Without education, many people may not be able to take care of their family, let alone themselves. Why is the Florida government not concerned about this?

2 comments:

Michelle F said...

I do see your point about students already struggling with tuition but I must say Florida schools, especially ours, are extremely inexpensive compared to other states. In Pennsylvania an in-state resident's tuition is at minimum around $10,000. My parents would never be able to afford that; I'd have to get loans. Luckily I came to FGCU and won't have any loans when I graduate. Tuition could be a lot higher is basically what I'm saying. We're lucky here.

Subversive Me said...

Michelle you have a point. We are lucky to be paying $125 per credit (i think that's what we are up to). Even the proposed $133 isn't that bad. A "good" school in NYC 10 years ago cost $400 per credit. Now you know why I didn't finish back when i lived there. But like Mz Rita says $200 can certainly be spent and rather quickly, on food, gas and utilities.