<p>Note that this is due to funding cuts by the State (and with the Marcellus Shale extra revenue, I’m not sure why the State cut the university’s budget). The proposal makes sense considering they lost almost 34 million from the State. And Penn State is already one of the most expensive public universities in the US, both for tuition costs for in state students and poor financial aid for in state students.
The university actually produces revenue for the State (educating future leaders and productive citizens, not to mention all these contracts, etc, etc) so making the university less attractive to instate and out of state students isn’t a good idea, but it wouldn’t be implented if the State didn’t cut its budget. So, the State seems to be shooting itself in the foot AND hurting most citizens of Pennsylvania in the process, too.
Deeply frustrating and maddening.
Oh, Pennsydad: it’s ALREADY cheaper to attend SUNY’s, especially with merit scholarships at some colleges like SUNY Buffalo or Geneseo, not to mention UAlabama’s automatic merit scholarships and the dozens private colleges in the Mid Atlantic region that are happy to discount tuition prices for good candidates. It’s still a disservice to the people of Pennsylvania to both defund the university and severely limit its ability to provide financial aid.</p>