Increase of $3 per credit hour approved, set to start in fall 2018
DMC Regents voted to raise tuition by $3 per credit hour starting in the fall at their Feb. 13 meeting.
The vote passed with a 5-3 vote, with Regent Carol Scott not present. Regents Gabriel Rivas, Ed Bennett and Guy Watts voted against the proposal.
Bennett earlier in the meeting raised concern after a loss of enrollment from Hurricane Harvey had not been recovered.
This would raise the overall cost of a student enrolled in 12 credit hours to about $36 more per semester. This will lead to around $476,526 more per semester if enrollment stays the same next semester, according to officials.
The tuition raise comes after a drop in enrollment overall the last two semesters, which is being attributed to Hurricane Harvey and is the second increase in two years. After going without an increase for three years, tuition rose by $5 per credit hour last year.
Students currently pay $61 per semester credit hour not including fees. With fees, it is $174 per one credit hour.
President Mark Escamilla called the increase difficult but a “necessary process of managing the college.”
The regents also picked a new architectural firm for the southside campus, going with the team of Gensler/Turner Ramirez Architects.
They were one of the four teams that was interviewed and proposed to design the new campus.
The regents expressed excitement at the new architects with Board Chairman Trey McCampbell saying he wants the new campus to “draw students in, make them want to stay there, and that is inviting for the greater community who may want to come to events on campus.”
