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NEWS RELEASE
For immediate release:
 February
11, 2003 |
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NEW FEDERAL REPORT FINDS NEW YORK 15TH MOST EXPENSIVE PUBLIC
COLLEGE TUITION IN NATION,
EXCEEDS NATIONAL AVERAGE, CALIFORNIA, FLORIDA, TEXAS
NEW YORK AVERAGE COMMUNITY COLLEGE TUITION RANKS SIXTH
RECENTLY PROPOSED TUITION INCREASE, CUTS TO TAP AND HIGHER EDUCATION
WILL EXACERBATE BLOW TO STATE'S STUDENTS
NYPIRG CALLS ON LEGISLATURE TO HOLD LINE ON TUITION AND RESTORE
CUTS TO FINANCIAL AID AND COLLEGES
New U.S. Department
of Education figures show that average tuition and fees charged by New
York State's senior public colleges are the 15th most expensive in the
nation, exceeding the national average, California, Florida, and Texas.
New York's community colleges, according to the federal government, have
the sixth highest tuition and fee charges in the nation.
This new
information undermines Governor Pataki's 2003-04 higher education budget
proposal, which allows for a $1,200 increase at the State University
of New York (SUNY) and the City University of New York (CUNY), cuts
millions in funding from the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), caps
awards at 66 percent, and reduces spending for senior and community
colleges.
"The
Governor's higher education budget proposal is a triple assault on college
students and their families, with an outrageous tuition increase, cuts
to financial aid and essential campus services," said Miriam Kramer,
NYPIRG's Higher Education Coordinator. "It increases costs which
are already too high and further shifts the burden to fund higher education
away from the state and onto the backs of students and their families."
"Like
many other students, I struggle to afford my education as it is. I rely
on financial aid, specifically the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)
to pay my tuition," said Charlene Piper, NYPIRG's Chairperson and
Brooklyn College student. "A tuition increase coupled with cuts
to TAP would effectively end my college career in spite of all of the
sacrifices my family has made and that I am only six classes away from
graduation."
Dozens
of college students, many dressed in caps and gowns with slogans written
on the caps, leafleted the Legislative Office Building and Capitol with
the following message:
•Hold the line on tuition
•Reject the Governor's TAP proposal
•Maintain funding for the state's opportunity programs
•Maintain funding for CUNY senior and community colleges
"The Governor's budget proposal is a lose-lose situation for New
York City college students, their families, and New York State. Students
are being asked to paying more, much more, and told that they will get
less, much less," added Kramer. "New York's economic future
lies in its brainpower. Proposals that make college less affordable
harm the state's long-term economy. Everyone agrees the state is facing
tough fiscal problems, but tuition hikes and cuts to higher education
will only worsen the problem, not make is better."
-30-
Attachments:
Community College and Senior
College Tuition and Fees Data
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