The following story was published by NPR Illinois on Jan. 18, 2024.
Tuition at the University of Illinois Springfield will remain unchanged for incoming students this fall. The latest action maintains the rate for both in-state and out-of-state students.
The University of Illinois Board of Trustees Thursday approved a rate freeze for in-state students at the Urbana-Champaign and Chicago campuses and hikes of about 2% for non-resident undergraduates.
An announcement from the school said it "reflects the university’s ongoing commitment to affordability." It is the first across the board freeze at all campuses in a quarter century.
“This decision maintains our ironclad commitment to affordability,” University of Illinois System President Tim Killeen said. “Few things we can do have a more positive impact on the working families of Illinois than holding down the cost of a life-changing college education.”
UIS has also struggled to boost enrollment, seeing the number drop from a high of 5,431 students in 2014 to 3,944 in the fall of 2020. Various efforts have resulted in a recent boost in the number of students. In the fall of 2023, enrollment went up 11%.