The University of Illinois Board of Trustees on Wednesday received a recommendation from U of I System leadership that would freeze tuition for incoming in-state freshmen and non-resident undergraduates for the 2021-22 academic year.
The proposal also includes modest increases in the cost of room and board for undergraduate students who live on campus: 2 percent at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2.6 percent at the University of Illinois Chicago and 2 percent at the University of Illinois Springfield. Small increases in fees are proposed for Urbana-Champaign and Chicago.
Members of the board’s Academic and Student Affairs Committee heard the proposal Wednesday, and it will be considered by the full board at its meeting on Thursday. The committee met virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The proposal follows extensive discussions between system-level leadership and leaders at the three universities about the need to maintain affordability as students deal with the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
U of I System President Tim Killeen said that the proposed tuition rates for the coming year build on efforts over the past seven years to contain costs for students and their families. The U of I System froze tuition rates for in-state undergraduate students from 2015-19 and, during the 2020-21 academic year, decided because of the pandemic to cover the costs of a 1.8 percent inflationary increase.
“Maintaining affordable access to a University of Illinois education has never been more critical than now, as the state works to overcome the economic fallout of the pandemic. The opportunities presented by a world-class education help provide a way forward for the state and its residents,” Killeen said. “Freezing tuition rates for our undergraduates demonstrates our continued commitment to them and to their families.”
Under the proposal, base tuition for in-state undergraduates enrolling for the first time next fall would remain at $12,254 a year at Urbana-Champaign, $10,776 at Chicago and $9,502 at Springfield.
Under the state’s guaranteed tuition law, tuition for each successive class remains fixed for four years.
Tuition for most graduate, professional and online programs would also remain unchanged, rising in a few cases and decreasing in a handful of others.
The U of I System has made financial aid to students a priority for more than a decade and continues to do so through the pandemic. Institutional financial aid has more than doubled since 2010 to about $258 million a year. Most undergraduates who are residents of the state pay less than full tuition and fees at each of the three universities: 62 percent receive a tuition/fee discount at Urbana-Champaign, 71 percent at Chicago and 81 percent at Springfield.
The proposal to freeze tuition for in-state undergraduates amid financial uncertainties brought on by the pandemic is a product of the strong commitment to educational access across the U of I System, said Barb Wilson, the system’s executive vice president and vice president for academic affairs.
“This proposal reflects a promise to ensure that students remain our priority and, under the circumstances, required a series of difficult decisions by leaders across our universities,” Wilson said. “I am grateful for their dedication to our students.”
Undergraduate fees/housing
The cost of room and board would increase under the proposal by 2 percent at Urbana-Champaign, 2.6 percent in Chicago and 1.4 percent in Springfield. The increase would be Springfield’s first since 2017.
At Urbana-Champaign, a basic double room with 12 meals and 15 café credits would cost $11,392, up from $11,168. The increases are intended to help cover inflationary increases in utility and food costs, deferred maintenance and a state-mandated minimum wage increase. About a quarter of undergraduates live on campus at Urbana-Champaign and the room-and-board increase will affect only those who will be moving on campus in the fall.
In Chicago the cost of standard room and board would rise to $11,833 from $11,553. The increase is driven by, among other factors, inflationary increases in the costs of food and utilities. About 15 percent of Chicago undergraduate students live on campus.
And in Springfield, the standard double room rate would increase to $10,960, up from $10,810. One of the three meal plan options also would increase at Springfield to better cover student dining needs. Like the increases at Urbana-Champaign and Chicago, inflation-driven increases in the costs of food and utilities are factors at Springfield, as well as the minimum-wage increase and other factors such as increasing maintenance costs and moving laundry services from a pay-per-load system to being included in the housing contract. About 38 percent of Springfield undergraduates live on campus.
Students traditionally play a role in helping to determine fees. Student fees at Urbana-Champaign would increase by $26 a year, or less than 1 percent, to $1,594, in part to cover an increase in the cost of student transportation through local mass transit. In Chicago, student fees would increase by $28 a year, less than 1 percent, primarily to finance enhanced student mental health services requested in a student referendum. Student fees in Springfield would be unchanged. Student health insurance premiums at Urbana-Champaign would not increase and rates for Chicago and Springfield will be set at a future Board of Trustees meeting.
