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YSU tuition remains the same – for now
YOUNGSTOWN
Tuition remains unchanged for now at Youngstown State University after Wednesday’s board of trustees meeting.
Neal McNally, YSU vice president for finance and business operations, said until the state submits its budget proposal concerning higher education by June 30, tuition will be the same. Full-time undergraduate tuition is $8,317 a year.
According to a university statement: “The state budget, which must be approved by June 30, limits tuition increases for Ohio public universities. If the state budget includes a tuition increase, YSU is likely to approve the nominal increase in tuition the legislation allows. If not, YSU will freeze tuition for a fourth-consecutive year.”
If adjustments are made in that state submission, “YSU could still raise tuition,” McNally said.
University spokesman Ron Cole said it’s important to remember that the university’s affordability is still one of the best in the area.
“We will be the lowest ... in the state of Ohio and western Pennsylvania,” Cole said.
“YSU students will continue to pay less in tuition than any other public comprehensive university in Ohio and western Pennsylvania under a $175.9 million operating budget. ... YSU’s cost will be nearly $1,500 below the state average,” the university’s statement said.
INNOVATION CENTER
In other university business, trustees agreed to purchase the former Mahoning County Misdemeanant Jail as the future home of YSU’s proposed Mahoning Valley Innovation and Commercialization Center. The property at 360 W. Commerce St., only a block from the YSU campus, is owned by Mahoning County.
The resolution authorizes university President Jim Tressel to negotiate and purchase the property. The cost has yet to be determined.
MVICC will be a shared-use facility, leveraging high-value advanced manufacturing assets among students from career centers, community colleges and YSU; offering entrepreneurial support services; and providing regional manufacturers with a collaborative environment for workforce training, product development and advanced manufacturing research.
YSU also has been awarded $1 million for the MVICC from the Appalachian Regional Commission.
“The investment will help YSU renovate an existing facility to create an Excellence Training Center, which will provide advanced manufacturing training and education services for workers and students,” according to a news release from the office of U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat from Cleveland.
Regional partners for the project include:
Eastern Gateway Community College
Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition
Youngstown Business Incubator
The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission
Regional workforce development boards.