By Kristina Goetz
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Cincinnati State Technical and Community College will raise its tuition by 9.9 percent this summer, increasing the per credit hour cost from $65 to $71.40 to make sure the college is in better financial shape next fiscal year.

A decision not to increase tuition this spring - coupled with state budget cuts, increased health care costs for employees, higher expenses than expected and investment losses - has left the college with a $1.8 million deficit in its operating budget that must be balanced before June 30.

"We regret having to make this change," said President Ron Wright, "but the continuing financial pressures on higher education make it necessary. We have tried, and will continue to try, to keep tuition as low as possible in order to make higher education affordable for students throughout the area."

Denny Sickinger, a 22-year-old from Colerain Township, said the tuition increase wouldn't force him out of school. He attends part-time to study construction management.

"I pay as I go," he said. "And I have one more year. An extra 30 bucks per term isn't going to break the bank, I guess. I figure there's nothing I can do about it, so I'll pay it."

The tuition increase will not affect the current budget, but it will raise about $1.9 million for the college next fiscal year, school officials said. That, along with increased monitoring of spending, a new budgeting process, higher student-teacher ratios and stronger relationships with community partners will help ensure a budget crisis doesn't happen again.

Board members have long been reluctant to raise tuition, arguing that access to the two-year school was a top priority.

While other colleges and universities in Greater Cincinnati and across the state have raised tuition by double-digit percentages, Cincinnati State has held its tuition rate at $65 per credit hour for the past two years.

Students are considered full-time if they are enrolled in 12 credit hours. The average number of credit hours students take per term is about 10, so Cincinnati State charges by credit hour rather than a flat rate.

But now, Wright said, the school can't hold the line on increases any longer.

"We've met the breaking point," he said. "We have no other recourse but to raise tuition. It's a near fiscal impossibility to move forward without these tuition increases."

But before the detailed planning starts on next year's budget, finance officials have to tie the loose ends of the current one to meet the demands of the Ohio Board of Regents and the required financial rating. If the school doesn't earn a high enough rating, it will be placed on fiscal watch.

Cincinnati State's woes are related to two separate pots of money. One is the operating budget, the other the capital budget, and both must be remedied before a higher rating would be given.

On the operating side, state budget cuts and higher expenditures than anticipated have contributed to a shortfall in the school's $46.9 million budget.

A lack of oversight also forced the institution to pay back $944,000 in federal financial aid that was allocated to students over three years because they either dropped out or finished the term with all Fs.

In 1997, the college was under scrutiny by the U.S. Department of Education over the same issue. School officials say a new system has been put in place so students who have dropped or aren't attending classes no longer receive aid.

So, school officials must cut $1.8 million before the end of June. Cincinnati State was in the red $2.4 million in March but cut hundreds of thousands of dollars to bring that number down.

The college has already frozen positions, cut student employees who aren't part of the college work-study program, stopped hiring temporary workers and no longer pays for travel. School officials say the slicing will continue until the school is in the black.

On the capital side, which includes construction of the new $55 million Advanced Technology and Learning Center, new federal accounting standards changed the way the college's assets and debts are calculated.

But Wright said the school's efforts on both ends would put Cincinnati State in a good financial position next year.

"If we do what we intend to do," he said, "we will have no deficit for next year."