If taxes are not raised, the tuition at California State University may raise to $7,400, twice the cost of three years ago. CSU Chancellor Charles Reed is also considering ending enrollment next spring.
CSU’s 23 campus presidents have been ordered to cut their budgets. The university has said that next fall there will be fewer courses, instructors, and 10,000 fewer students.
State lawmakers are attempting to close a $15.4 billion deficit in the state budget, and it is possible that CSU could lose another $500 million in funding. The increase in tuition and the possibility of ending spring enrollment could be avoided if the taxes that expire in June were to be extended. California taxes would raise around $14 billion.
Most teachers and counselors are proponents of raising taxes.
“I am a strong proponent for increasing access to higher education, so I would be supportive of extending taxes to support this,” said counselor Natalie Mathrole. “I think that in the long run, the more money we put into education, the more improvements will be made to our community through having an educated and capable workforce.”
Not only are the students at CSU being affected, but so are students at CVHS that are planning on attending CSU.
“The changes in tuition cost and enrollment will affect CVHS students by making college costs more of a financial hardship for our students and their families,” said Mathrole. “It has also become far more competitive to get into college and a lot of our students are feeling the stress of getting into the college of their choice, as well as finding a way to graduate on time when class offerings are limited once they are enrolled.”