Pima College approves tuition hikes for coming school year

In-state students at Pima Community College will pay 3.8 percent more for tuition this fall, money that could help cover pay raises for the school’s workforce.

PCC’s Governing Board on Wednesday approved a $3 per credit increase for Arizona residents, making the Tucson school the third-most-costly of 10 community colleges statewide.

The cost per credit will increase from $78.50 to $81.50.

The change will add $72 a year to the annual tuition tab of a student taking 24 credits a year, who will now pay $1,956.

A student taking 30 credits a year will pay $90 more for a total bill of $2,445.

The board voted 4-1 in favor of the increase, with supporters arguing the extra money is necessary to retain quality employees and improve college operations now that PCC no longer receives state funding.

“I don’t like year after year putting this burden on students,” said board member Demion Clinco.

“If we don’t do a (tuition) increase, we can’t do a wage increase,” he added. “We have to build a high-quality institution and we have to do that through (employee) compensation.”

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Board chair Mark Hanna, who also supported the increase, called the decision “agonizing” because many students already struggle financially. But the tuition increase is critical “in order for our college to be financially sound and for us to reward our employees in a proper manner,” Hanna said.

Luis Gonzales, the board’s newest member, was the lone vote against the increase.

“I don’t buy the argument that you have to raise tuition for students to pay for a raise. There are other places we could cut,” he said.

PCC employees’ last pay raise was in 2015.

International students and U.S. students from outside Arizona will see their tuition rates rise by 1 percent if they study on campus and by 5.9 percent for online classes.

Students over age 55 will pay a reduced rate of $40.75 per credit, an effort by the college to boost enrollment in that market segment.

The college has also capped tution fees at 15 credits per semester, meaning students will not have to pay extra for any other classes they want to take.