Kansas college students and parents: Here's how much your tuition may go up next year

Students and parents will likely be asked to pay more for a college education from a public university starting next school year.

The six state universities under the Kansas Board of Regents have all proposed tuition and fee increases for 2024-25, meeting materials show .

• The University of Kansas is proposing a 3.5% tuition increase, after last year's 5% increase.
• Kansas State University is proposing a 2.8% tuition increase, after last year's 5% increase.
• Wichita State University is proposing a 3.9% tuition increase, after last year's 5.9% increase.
• Emporia State University is proposing a 4% tuition increase, after last year's 5% increase.
• Pittsburg State University is proposing a 3.5% tuition increase, after last year's 5% increase.
• Fort Hays State University is proposing a 6% tuition increase, after last year's 7% increase.

The proposals are scheduled to be discussed by the regents, who are tasked by state law with setting tuition and fee rates at state universities, at a Wednesday meeting in Topeka. A formal vote typically happens in June.

The actual tuition proposals with more detailed information on each individual university were not included in the agenda documents available online ahead of the meeting.

Kansas politicians did not freeze tuition

Before the current school year, KU had frozen tuition for the previous four years. The other five state universities had frozen tuition in three out of those four years. But Kansas politicians did not freeze tuition this year.

Using the state budget, the Legislature and Gov. Laura Kelly have sometimes frozen tuition . But they did not do so last year or this year, despite Kelly promising during her 2022 reelection campaign that "in my second term, I'll continue supporting tuition freezes."

The board's meeting documents noted that university tuition proposals are prepared with consideration for the amount of state funding. According to KBOR, that included the Legislature rejecting Kelly's proposal to address half of the effect of inflation on university operations and cutting in half the proposed 5% merit pool for university employee pay raises.

The KBOR documents placed some of the blame for tuition increases on inflation.

"Inflation impacts higher education in the same manner it affects other segments of the economy, eroding the purchasing power of the universities over time," the meeting documents said.

The documents also indicating other areas of targeted spending increases and decreases.

"The state universities are seeking Board approval of tuition rate increases to accommodate specific cost increases, notably for recruiting and retaining faculty and staff in regional and national markets, increasing student financial aid to provide higher education opportunities to more students, and making needed investments in cybersecurity, academic advising, and student recruitment," the documents said. "With the budget enacted by the Legislature and the tuition rates proposed by the universities, the proposals also plan budget reductions, reallocations, or use of cash reserves."

Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd .

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas college students and parents: Here's how much your tuition may go up next year