Students from 10 counties affected

The cost of tuition will drop 80 percent for Kent State regional campus students from certain out-of-state counties starting next school year.

The Board of Trustees approved the new out-of-state surcharge rate effective for the 2010-2011 academic year for students in northern West Virginia and western Pennsylvania.

The current out-of-state surcharge is $3,846 per semester. Under the current structure, upper-division full-time students would have their total costs reduced to $769 per semester, a savings of $3,078.

Students must live in Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Crawford, Erie, Lawrence and Mercer counties in Pennsylvania or Brooke, Hancock and Ohio counties in West Virginia.

This reduction is expected to help create partnerships with out-of-state businesses in the areas served by regional campuses, as well as improve access to higher education within the bi-state regions and increase enrollment opportunities.

“This is directly impacting our Salem campus and Ashtabula campuses,” said board secretary Jane Murphy Timken. “We hope this reduction will allow us to increase enrollment in those regional campuses.”

Surrounding universities, such as Youngstown State and Ohio University Eastern Campus, have already reduced their out-of-state tuition for northern West Virginia and western Pennsylvania residents.

The board also approved a lease to change the location of the Kent State Geneva facility. The program has been in its current location, the John Knocks Center, since 1977.

Contact administration reporter Kristyn Soltis at [email protected].