In 2017, Mills declared a financial emergency because of declining enrollment and revenues, and laid off some tenured faculty.[1] That September, it became the first private college in California to implement a tuition reset, announcing a 36% reduction in its undergraduate tuition beginning in fall 2018, with a goal of making a Mills education more affordable.[31] Undergraduate tuition in the 2018–2019 academic year was $28,765 (reduced from $44,765); room and board costs were $13,448.