RichmondCC President Opposes Proposed Surcharge

 Richmond Community College President Dr. Dale McInnis has made his position clear about a proposal to allow community colleges to tack a local surcharge on to student tuition. He opposes this additional expense to students and will be voting against it next week when the proposal comes before the N.C. Association of Community College Presidents.

“At RichmondCC, we are looking for innovative ways to keep the costs of tuition down, not increasing it,” McInnis said. “This surcharge proposal is counterintuitive to our mission, which is to put students first. Many of our students already struggle with the cost of tuition and books, and this surcharge may prevent, or further delay, some of our students’ pursuit of a college education.”

According to the proposal that will go before the 58 presidents in the N.C. Community College System, individual community colleges would have the liberty to add a surcharge that could mean up to $256 a year more for a full-time student paying $2,432 in tuition per academic year. Each college would be allowed to keep the additional revenue from the surcharge and use it to upgrade equipment and develop new programs.

Tuition rates, set by the N.C. General Assembly for all 58 colleges, have risen by 35 percent since 2010-2011.

“You cannot grow our college on the backs of our students who are struggling to start new lives and careers,” McInnis said. “We are fortunate to serve a community that supports the College and has provided matching funds and donations that have allowed us to continue to grow and serve more students.”

Last September, McInnis announced a plan to offer free college tuition and fees to residents of Richmond and Scotland counties in an historic initiative called the RichmondCC Guarantee.

According to the Guarantee, any student who meets the following three requirements will be guaranteed two years free tuition at RichmondCC:

• Successfully complete at least two free dual enrollment courses through Career and College Promise pathways;

• Graduate high school with at least a 3.0 unweighted GPA;

• Complete all RichmondCC scholarship and federal financial aid applications

The RichmondCC Guarantee is in place for all Richmond and Scotland County residents, beginning with 2016 high school graduates.

“By guaranteeing free college tuition and fees at RichmondCC for two years, we are providing people with a savings of $4,800,” McInnis said.

Another initiative that has taken root at RichmondCC to offset college costs for students is the Working Scholarship, which is funded through the RCC Foundation by local donors. This scholarship is available to working students who are denied full state and federal financial aid options because of their incomes.

The College also recently announced a developing internship program that will partner with local business and companies to hire students for paid internships. Students will gain hands-on work experience in a career field of their choice and earn money while going to school.

“Our students confront a variety of obligations that conflict with their educational goals,” McInnis said. “I will not support additional fees that may come between our students and their goals.” Any decision on the surcharge made by the N.C. Association of Community College Presidents would have to be approved by the state’s community college board.