Shelton resident Jake Champagne couldn’t join the rest of his classmates in January at the start of the spring semester at Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven.
Instead, at 21 years old, he needed to work more to save up money to pay for his next semester — hopefully he’ll have the cash by this fall. But with a tuition hike passed at Southern and other state schools Thursday (March 21), things won’t be getting any easier.
“I had to get another job,” said Champagne, who works at a grocery store and a bank. “It’s going to be hard if the costs keep going up. The paychecks aren’t going up either, nowhere to afford the cost of school.”
Currently, the cost of one semester at a state university averages to be about $4,300.
But on Thursday the state’s Board of Regents of Higher Education voted to approve an increase of 5.1 percent in tuition for Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (ConnSCU), which have nearly 100,000 students enrolled.
The vote took place around noon at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic, with students from all over Connecticut protesting the increases.
Background
ConnSCU is made up of the four state universities, 12 community colleges and Charter Oak State College. All are governed by the Board of Regents.
Last week — amid protests at Central, Western and Southern — the Finance Committee of the the Board of Regents passed the tuition hike to the full board, which voted to approve the increase Thursday (March 21)
With the 5.1 percent increase, commuting students attending a state university will pay up to $465 more, and residential students can expect an increase of up to $999, depending on the university.
Students attending community colleges will pay up to $188 more per year.
“Whose School, OUR SCHOOL”
Jynnelle Smith, a New Haven resident and junior at Southern who attended the protest Thursday at Eastern, said she is also struggling to get her college degree.
“I am here because I know a lot of people who want to go to college and get a degree, but can’t because of money. Now community college is going to be more expensive too,” Smith said. “We are the students and it’s not fair.”
Students protested in front of Eastern’s Student Center chanting, “Hey, regents come out, we’ve got something to talk about,” and “Hey hey, ho ho, tuition hikes have got to go,” and “Whose school, OUR SCHOOL.”
Moments before the vote took place, students were walking into the Betty Tipton Room —- within Eastern’s Student Center -— with green and red tape covering their mouths.
The message on the tape read, “No tuition hike.” The tape was meant to symbolize that students have very little representation and voice within the Board of Regents.
Chairman of the Board of Regents Lewis J. Robinson said, “Nobody on the Board of Regents is happy about raising tuition.”
At the end of the vote students had time to address the board during the public comment session. The board gave them 20 minutes, but time was running out and the line of students was increasing.
Faculty members were in attendance and also received 20 minutes to talk to the board, but gave up their time for students to share concerns with the board.
Smith spoke before the Board of Regents and said that it’s hard for her to balance working two jobs and going to school.
She said she’s fearful of next year because she thinks she’ll have to get another job to pay for the tuition hike.
“I was going to go to Western but I didn’t receive financial aid for housing,” Smith said. “I live in New Haven, thankfully I’m two miles away from Southern, so I can walk to school every day.”
Smith is the oldest of her four siblings and said she reminds them how important it is to go to college, but they don’t understand.
“They’ll be going to college soon and it’s hard for me to convince them to go. They see me struggling,” Smith said. “And they are telling to me drop out because times are financially hard for me and my family.”
Smith said she is the first generation to be in college within her family and has no plans to stop her education now. She said she has about a year and a half more to go until she finishes her business management degree.
What’s Next?
Meanwhile, Champagne, the Shelton student, couldn’t attend the protest at Eastern.
He had to work.
Since the board approved the 5.1 percent increase, Champagne said it leaves him worried he might have to get a third job.
“Things like this might result in someone like me, who has to pay for school themselves, to not go anymore or now take longer to finish,” Champagne said. “You’d think the government would want people to easily go and be able to get a higher education.”
Student leaders also complained they’re being shut out of decision making among the power brokers in Connecticut higher education.
Sam Chaney, a student organizer with “Students for University Democracy,” said when the Board of Trustees was “renamed” to the Board of Regents it cut the number of students reps from four to two. Meanwhile, the total number of board members increased from 12 to 15.
