Salt Lake Community College will increase its tuition in 2022, joining six other public colleges in Utah who will do the same.
Effective summer 2022, SLCC will raise tuition by 4%, which adds $138 for two semesters at 15 credits each. The Utah Board of Higher Education also approved SLCC’s student fee increase of $25, or 5.62%.
Student Association President Lindsay Simons explained the process in an email.
“Myself and other students served on the Student Fee Board from October 2021-February 2022 to recommend student fee increases for the upcoming academic year,” Simons wrote. “The increases for tuition and fees were also shared with students at the Truth in Tuition event in March.”
Peta Owens-Liston, SLCC assistant director of public relations, said there are things the college is doing to counterbalance the tuition increase. This includes raising the minimum wage for SLCC employees from $12 to $14, beginning July 1.
“Part of SLCC’s mission is to provide affordable access to education, so our leadership is very mindful of maintaining that and sensitive to the pressures on our student population,” Owens-Liston said.
SLCC’s will sustain its child care program through a combination of a fee increase and subsidies from institutional funds and federal grants, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. SLCC President Deneece Huftalin told the Tribune that she is trying to find other places to cut costs.
Last year, SLCC moved the source of funding for some services — including the student newspaper, ID card, recycling, and charges associated with running the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center — from fees into tuition, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
SLCC’s restored its application fee, which now costs $20. The school previously waived the fee, then $40, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Information regarding tuition and fees and financial aid can be found on SLCC’s website. Financial aid offices are located at four of SLCC’s campuses.
