U. of I. tuition increases by less than $200
By Stefano Esposito Staff Reporter sesposito@suntimes.com January 24, 2013 11:24AM
Updated: January 24, 2013 12:19PM
Beginning next fall, incoming University of Illinois students will see the smallest increase in tuition rates in more than a decade, under a proposal the Board of Trustees unanimously approved Thursday.
The “guaranteed” four-year tuition for in-state freshmen would increase 1.7 percent, or 0.7 per year, according to the university; that would increase tuition by less than $200 each year at the university’s three campuses, officials said.
The tuition guarantee was launched in 2004, as a way to help students plan for the cost of their undergraduate education.
University President Robert Easter said ongoing cost-cutting efforts during the last three years have allowed officials to keep tuition rate increases close to the annual rate of inflation.
“Last year, we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Morrill Act, which created land-grant universities like the U. of I. and opened the doors of higher education to the children of all social classes,” Easter said in a statement. “It helped fuel the most dramatic social and technological advances in our nation’s history, and it is critical that we ensure those same opportunities for new generations of students.”
Contributing: AP
