Board approves no-tuition-increase budget, tours Lumley Aviation Center

In a meeting held Thursday at Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Lumley Aviation Center, the college’s Board of Directors approved the institution’s budget for 2023-24 – one calling for no increase in tuition.

The $122.1 million operating budget does include modest increases in per-credit technology and health and wellness fees that have not been raised in approximately 10 years, as well as a per-hour lab fee that has not been increased in six years.

The impact of tuition and fees combined is a 1.67% increase for students in 2023-24, equating to $18,240 annually for a typical Pennsylvania resident student enrolled for two 15-credit semesters. Tuition and fees combined for a nonresident student will total $25,980.

Suzanne T. Stopper, senior vice president for finance/CFO, told the board that the budget meant prioritizing limited resources and dealing with multiple challenges, like the continuing enrollment-related impact of the COVID-19 pandemic through Spring 2025.

Balancing that, Stopper said, enrollment for Fall 2023 looks positive, and employers continue to covet Penn College’s highly skilled graduates in a variety of career fields.

“They’re what the commonwealth and the nation need,” she said.

Board member Zack Moore commended the college administration for finding a way to advance a no-tuition-increase budget in tough times.

“This is a very difficult environment for all of higher ed,” said Moore, who serves as vice president for government and community relations at Penn State.

As part of the budget package, the board approved voluntary gifts from the college to the City of Williamsport ($100,000) and the Williamsport Area School District ($35,000). The gifts are reevaluated annually.

“We think it’s important that the college show support for the community,” Stopper said.

In his comments to the board, President Michael J. Reed said increasing enrollment remains a top priority, adding that applications and deposits both are up 10% for Fall 2023, and 45 academic programs have waitlists. He said Academic Affairs and faculty are working creatively with prospective students affected by the waitlists to find ways for them to begin their education at Penn College in similar programs.

Most of the programs with waitlists, Reed said, are offered by the School of Engineering Technologies, mentioning welding, diesel, automotive, aviation, electrical and HVAC, among others.

The president offered high praise for Police Chief Chris E. Miller, who is retiring next month.

“Chief Miller has been an exceptional leader; we wish him the best in retirement,” Reed said.

In his comments, Board Chair Sen. Gene Yaw spoke of the importance of two recent public hearings offered on campus – by the state Senate Majority Policy Committee and the Center for Rural Pennsylvania – addressing the same topic: workforce availability and population change in rural Pennsylvania.

Noting that nearly all counties north of Interstate 80 have lost population, while those in southeast Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia “collar” counties gained, he said it poses multiple challenges for this region.

Turning his focus to the state budget for 2023-24, Yaw said it is “almost budget season” in Harrisburg.

“The last two weeks in June are when things will really get rolling,” he said, referencing the June 30 deadline to pass a budget for 2023-24.

Yaw said he will again advocate for recognition of technical education and Penn College in the budget negotiations.

After the meeting, the board toured the Aviation Center, the site where instruction is delivered for the aviation maintenance technology bachelor’s degree, the aviation technology associate degree and the aviation maintenance technician certificate major.

The next regularly scheduled Pennsylvania College of Technology Board of Directors meeting is Aug. 3.