New CSU Chancellor Timothy White Pledges No Tuition Hikes

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Credit UC Riverside

CSU Chancellor Timothy P. White

The new chancellor of the California State University system is promising tuition won’t go up this academic year or next.  But Chancellor Timothy White says Californians must understand that a CSU education costs money – and that it’s a worthy investment, both for students and the state.

White says the Cal State system has lost a billion dollars in budget cuts since the recession began – and tuition increases only offset about a third of that.

“We’re still some $650 million in the hole where we were just four or five years ago.  Yet we’re teaching some 60, 70,000 more students than we were then.  So we are actually a very efficient – and I know there is an expense, but it is low-cost to students, relative to the value; it is low-cost to California, relative to the value; and it’s high-quality," says White.

The chancellor says the federal “sequestration” cuts will have a significant effect on the CSU if they continue.  They’ll reduce the money available for research at Cal State campuses, and the amount available for student financial aid.