NCMC Tuition Will Remain Steady For In-District Students

Some North Central Missouri College students will see an increase in tuition and fees following action taken at a meeting of college trustees on Tuesday.
Vice President of Business and Finance Tyson Otto, who made the recommendation for the increases, said they are necessary to “ensure the college can continue to pay for quality programs and quality instruction.”
NCMC President Dr. Lenny Klaver agreed and said the increases are “reasonable” and still keep the college’s tuition at less than half the in-state tuition of regional four-year state institutions.
Students living in the college’s taxing district, which follows the boundaries of the Trenton R-9 School District, will not see an increase in tuition for the 2022-23 school year as the cost will remain at $92 per credit hour. All other students will see a $5 per credit hour increase in tuition. The increase applies to the following categories, with the new tuition rate listed: other Missouri residents ($158); other U.S. residents ($195), international students ($195), online, outreach and course by arrangement (all $180), PN and ADN on-ground nursing students ($162) and ADN online, ($188).
Dual credit and early college students will see no change in their tuition, which is $108 per credit hour for dual credit students; $14 per credit hour for in-district early college students and $64 per credit hour for out-of-district, online and outreach early college students.
Fees that apply to all students saw a $2 per credit hour increase to $20 for both the student development fee and the facility fee, with the technology fee set at $10 per credit hour.
Several fees for new allied health programs were approved, including a $300 per credit hour fee for the radiologic technology program and the surgical technology program; a $500 per semester fee for the summer radiological technology program; $1,000 per semester for the surgical technology summer program and $2,000 fees for the spring and fall semesters for that program.
In addition, trustees approved a new course fee of $14 for the Introduction to Behavioral Health course to cover the cost of registering students with the Family Care Safety Registry.
Living on campus will cost more in 2022-23 as the board approved a 4.5 percent increase in meal plans and a 3 percent increase in double and single rooms. The new residence hall, which is an apartment style complex, will cost $5,115 per year, while the older halls, Ellsworth and Selby, will have a rate of $3,070 per year for double occupancy and $4,090 for single occupancy. The all-access meal plan will cost a student $3,260 next year, while the eight-meal plan will cost $1,755 per year.
It was noted that a rate comparison found the new rates to be competitive and NCMC will incur a contractual increase in board rates for the 2022-23 academic year for services provided by Great Western Dining that reflect an increase in the Food Away From Home Consumer Price Index increase. Great Western had sought a 6 percent increase but that amount has been negotiated down to the 4.5 percent.
Inflation was blamed for the increases and Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Kristen Alley said that she hates to raise the cost of living on campus, especially when the tuition and fees are also increasing the cost for students. However, she noted, NCMC  is “on par or less than” other colleges across the state when it comes to the cost of living on campus. She also reminded trustees that the college had decreased rates last year so they are just getting back to where the rates were two years ago.
In personnel items, the retirement of Dennis Sager as life science instructor was accepted, “with
regrets and gratitude” effective July 29, and trustees accepted the resignation of Alyssa Black as TRIO administrative assistant, effective March 10. Ms. Black’s replacement, Holly Hernandez of Princeton, was hired and will begin her duties March 28.
Also hired were Richard Wilson of Bosie, ID, who will serve as IT systems administrator, beginning March 28. Adjunct instructors approved were Troy Figg of Chillicothe, who will teach industrial technology courses, and Dr. Travis (Mike) Birkhead, who will teach science courses. Sarah Musgrove of Hatfield will serve as a clinical adjunct instructor.
Trustees also:
• waived the second reading and approved a board policy establishing a four-day work week that will allow employees, with supervisor approval, to work a regular work week (37.5 hours) Monday through Thursday for the months of May through August with the actual beginning and ending dates to be established by the college president. Public hours during that time period will be Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with the Ketcham Community Center to remain on its standard summer operation schedule. Faculty and staff will be allowed to dress in casual attire during the summer schedule. The four-day week has been approved on a year-by-year basis for the past several years but will now be the permanent summer schedule, which typically runs from commencement to the fall in-service.
• voted to purchase a 2022 Ford Transit Connect seven-passenger van at a cost of $28,679 and a 2022 Ford F-250 truck for $40,680. Both will be purchased from Barnes Baker Automotive and were the low bid of three received.
• heard a report by Director of Regional Programs Whitney Trump on dual credit and early college enrollment, with Mrs. Trump telling trustees that in 2021 dual credit tuition generated $554,256 in the 2021-22 school year and the Early College Program (any classes taken on campus or online by students still in high school) generated $20,412 in tuition last year. Mrs. Trump said 24 percent of students who took dual credit courses through NCMC in 2021 enrolled at the college as first-time freshmen.
• heard a report from Dr. Alley, who said there are 407 unduplicated applications for graduation this year, with 448 degrees and certificates to be awarded. She also announced several activities on campus and said Edward Neill, a criminal justice student from Princeton, has been selected to receive the Missouri Community College Association Student Leadership Award.
• heard a report from Dr. Klaver, who discussed proposed legislation that would affect community colleges and said enrollment figures for summer and fall are “looking reasonably positive.” He commended Mrs. Trump for her efforts in dual credit and early college, especially in Savannah, where the college will be establishing a campus.
• heard a report from Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Tristan Londre, who said the college is adding several new programs for the fall, including certificates in entrepreneurship, robotics skills, robotics and maintenance as well as new degree emphasis areas in cyber security, networking and food/beverage management.
• heard reports from Chief Information Officer Jennifer Triplett, who said work is continuing on the old U.S. Bank building, and Dr. Sterling Recker, who discussed the makeup and function of the curriculum committee. It was noted that Mrs. Triplett is featured in the cover story of a recent edition of “Ed Tech’ magazine.
• approved the by-laws for the Green Hills Head Start policy council and declared several items as surplus property.
A closed session was listed on the agenda, but none was needed.
The board’s next regular meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 26.