Tuition increases are coming to Emporia State students this upcoming semester.
The Kansas Board of Regents has approved a 5-percent increase across all student categories, meaning an increase of over $130 per semester for full-time resident undergraduate students. Full-time resident undergrad students will now pay almost $2,800 per semester.
The 5-percent increase translates to an increase of almost $330 per semester for full-time non-resident undergraduates, an increase of over $160 per semester for full-time resident graduate students and over $400 for full-time non-resident graduate students. So-called NEARR students — those from Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas paying 150 percent of resident tuition rates — will see increases of nearly $200 for full-time undergraduate students and almost $250 for full-time graduate students.
ESU Vice President of Administration and Finance Diana Kuhlmann says increased operational costs are driving this move.
This follows flat tuition in fiscal 2020, 2022 and 2023 at ESU and virtually all other Regents schools. The last approved tuition increase at ESU was 2.4 percent in fiscal 2021. Kuhlmann says tuition at ESU is still the lowest of its Board of Regents-designated peer universities and the second-lowest in the MIAA.
Regents also increased the distance education fee by over $2.70 per credit hour, thus matching the campus activity fee; increased parking permits, fines and fees by varying amounts, in part to fund parking lot maintenance and also to replace outdated or broken meters; and increased Student Rec Center membership fees by almost 30 percent.
The Regents noted $11 million in cuts to Emporia State’s base budget since fiscal 2014, as well as the ongoing reinvestment process as part of approving ESU’s Framework for Workforce Management this past September.
