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The University of Illinois System has more money to work with
this school year after the General Assembly passed an operating
budget that included a 7% increase from last year. The system
has a nearly $698 million operating budget in the 2024 fiscal
year.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker paid a visit to the University of Illinois in
Champaign-Urbana Monday to kick off the school year.
“By restoring public funding directly to our universities, we’re
eliminating the need for tuition hikes, so you know what to
expect semester after semester as you attend school here,”
Pritzker said.
Tuition hikes were approved for this fall at the U of I,
Illinois State University, Eastern Illinois University, and
Western Illinois University. With the increase at the U of I,
the base in-state tuition for undergraduates this fall rose
nearly 2% at the Champaign-Urbana campus to $12,712 a year.
“These modest increases will allow our universities to maintain
the excellence that students and their families expect and
manage inflationary pressures that are driving up our expenses,”
U of I System President Tim Killeen said in a statement.
The governor also highlighted how increased funding for higher-ed
programs like the Monetary Award Program, or MAP, grants will
help persuade Illinois high schoolers from leaving the state for
their education. The state budget also included $100 million in
MAP grants.
Between 2008 and 2020, thousands of students left for colleges
in other states, with the most attending the University of Iowa,
University of Missouri and Indiana University.
There are new laws affecting the school year. One law aims to
make major course credits at Illinois higher education
institutions transfer-friendly, reducing the time and money
students spend on degrees.
Under another new law, if a community college student needs to
enroll in a program not offered in their district, the student
can attend a recognized public community college in any other
district and pay tuition and fees at the rate of the sending
college.
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