The University of Tennessee’s decision Monday to freeze tuition rates for their Chattanooga and Knoxville campuses drew strong praise from gubernatorial candidate Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06).
“We need to keep higher education affordable for students in Tennessee. Not every student needs to go to college, but those that are shouldn’t be burdened by unreasonable debt as a result,” Black said in a statement, adding:
I applaud the University of Tennessee System for taking a common-sense step to incentivize students to work hard and get their degree faster with less debt. As governor, I will work to make college degrees and trade certificates more affordable and attainable for all Tennesseans.
And I’ll work to restore the governor as a voting member of the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees to make sure our higher education institutions receive the executive oversight they deserve.
The university of Tennessee Subcommittee on Tuition, Fees and Financial Aid met on Monday to address tuition rates. While the subcommittee voted to keep the rates level at Chattanooga and Knoxville, students at the University of Tennessee, Martin will see a 3 percent increase.
KnoxNews.com reporter Erica Breunlin noted that this will be the first time in 30 years that tuition rates remained flat:
The subcommittee vote on tuition and student fee proposals will now be sent on to the Finance and Administration Committee, which will then vote to move proposals to the full Board of Trustees for approval. Both parties are scheduled to take a vote on June 22, which will mark the current trustees’ last meeting.
Should the proposals get the final stamp of approval, annual in-state tuition and fees at UT Knoxville will remain at $12,970, with out-of-state tuition and fees stay at $31,390, according to David Miller, chief financial officer for the UT System.
