| Key Point: Since Republicans took over Texas government five years ago, tuition has skyrocketed -- increasing by 68% across the UT system. Bottom line: Republicans are pricing families out of the opportunity of higher education. When Republicans took control of the Texas Legislature in 2003, they did everything in their power to shrink government in order to ensure that Texas families were left to drown in the bathtub. Take, for example, tuition deregulation. Prior to 2003, the state invested in higher education tuition and set a hard cap for universities. This created low tuition for Texas colleges and universities, allowing Texas families -- many of whom are middle and working class -- to still have opportunties for higher education. However, the 78th Legislature chose to implement tuition deregulation, allowing Texas colleges and universities to jack up tuition without any measurable increase in the quality of education. I started school in the fall of 2002, and left UT-Austin in the spring of 2006, and I never once witnessed any measurable increase in the quality of my education. I did, however, notice an increase in tuition -- an increase that is hitting students and families hard. UT Regents -- appointed by the failed Republican leadership we must desparately replace -- have decided to increase tuition and fees at the UT system schools once again. Here is a look at the increase in tuition in fees, from the fall of 2003 (the last year before tuition deregulation) and what families can expect to pay when they begin their college journey next fall: | Increase in Tuition and Fees in UT System
| | | Fall ‘03 | Fall ‘08 | Increase
| | UT-Arlington | $ 2,366 | $ 4,071 | 72.06% | | UT-Austin | $ 2,721 | $ 4,266 | 56.78% | | UT-Brownsville | $ 1,490 | $ 2,736 | 83.62% | | UT-Dallas | $ 2,622 | $ 4,705 | 79.44% | | UT-El Paso | $ 1,837 | $ 3,034 | 65.16% | | UT-Pan American | $ 1,561 | $ 2,612 | 67.33% | | UT-Permian Basin | $ 1,749 | $ 2,714 | 55.17% | | UT-San Antonio | $ 2,222 | $ 3,832 | 72.46% | | UT-Tyler | $ 1,795 | $ 2,994 | 66.80% | | UT SYSTEM AVG | $ 2,040 | $ 3,440 | 68.62% | Source: Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (Fall 2003 Numbers)
Source: KEYE-TV report (Fall 2008 Numbers) I'm researching how much Texas' other schools and universities are increasing their tuition and fees for the Fall of 2008. I know that, for the fall of 2007, the University of Houston had already witnessed a 70% increase in tuition and fees. The problem isn't unique to the UT system -- I'm using their figures to illustrate the larger problem: If we don't put a halt to the skyrocketing tuition increases, Texas families are no longer going to be able to afford schools. For some, that means graduating high school seniors will simply choose not to go to college. For others, they will simply choose to attend school elsewhere, especially since the state's financial aid programs -- such as the Texas GRANT program -- now enroll fewer children than they did five years ago. There's real lives at stake in this November's elections. TDP Chair Boyd Richie had this to say in a release today about the skyrocketing tuition increase: “With rising gas prices, soaring homeowner insurance rates, and an economic downturn, the last thing Texas families need is another “tuition tax increase,” concluded Richie. “Uncontrolled tuition is another Republican failure that provides a powerful reason for Texas voters to elect Democrats this November and in 2010. "We need elected officials—not Republican donor appointees— who will take responsibility for making affordable higher education and the creation of an educated workforce a real priority. The economic future of Texas depends on it.” |
