TCU sets tuition for 2007 - 08 academic year

Fort Worth, TX

11/10/2006

TCU’s Board of Trustees voted today to increase tuition for the 2007- 08 academic year by eight percent during their fall board meeting. New and returning full-time undergraduate students taking between 12 – 18 hours will pay a combined tuition and fee of $24,820 from the current $22,980. Even with the increase, TCU’s tuition remains an excellent value among private universities across the country.

“TCU is a world-class, values-centered university,” said Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr. “Those qualities are readily reflected in the distinctive research conducted by faculty and students, as well as the complex societal problems they regularly solve. And while increasing tuition is never easy, we cannot abandon our commitment to impart an unrivaled educational experience.”

The Board also agreed to increase financial aid by eight percent.

Over the past few years, TCU has invested in both its academic programs and physical campus. The university appointed 40 new faculty positions in the past three years, and plans to add more. Additionally, TCU has invested some $200 million in new and upgraded facilities including the Tucker Technology Center, Smith Entrepreneurs Hall, the University Recreation Center and the new campus commons, which will include a new Brown-Lupton University Union and four residence halls.

In other news, the board also approved a two-year residential requirement for all freshmen and sophomores to be implemented beginning fall of 2007. Construction on new residential halls will be complete by the end of next year. The two-year residential requirement will help TCU reach its goal to establish a residential environment that will enrich the student experience and reflect a recommitment to TCU’s residential heritage. The students must live in university owned or university-authorized housing.

“Studies show that students who live on campus receive a much richer educational experience than those who live off campus,” said Dr. Don Mills, vice chancellor for student affairs. “Until 1980, virtually all underclassmen and a majority of upperclassmen lived on campus, but the increased student population plus a healthy demand for on-campus living outstripped our residential space. Implementing this requirement will help TCU recommit to its residential heritage and align the university with other major private institutions with on-campus housing requirements.”

Chancellor Boschini also reported that applications to TCU are at an all time high. Applications are up over 100 percent from this time last year.  Additionally, the Chancellor noted that the Strategic Initiative Fund, an internally funded grant program launched in conjunction with TCU’s Vision in Action strategic planning initiative, has supported over $2 million in projects that are transforming the university, Fort Worth and the world. Examples of those projects include the Fort Worth ISD Workplace Spanish Project, which provides Spanish language training to nearly 300 teachers and staff; the TCU Institute of Child Development, which offers research-based interventions for at-risk children; the Girl of 10,000 Smiles, an original performance piece that was presented at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland; and the Real World Integrated Marketing Communications agency that provides creative communication assistance and advertising for Tarrant County non-profits.

The Board of Trustees also attended the unveiling of a portrait celebrating the 50th year of the Ranch Management Program at TCU.

In other business, the Trustees passed resolutions recognizing the late Wayne Moore, former Governor of Arkansas Winthrop P. Rockefeller and Perry R. Bass. Moore served as a trustee from 1993 – 2001 and was appointed a trustee emeritus beginning in 2001. He served as a trustee for the Brite Divinity School board for 38 years and as a chairman of the board for 23 of those 38 years. Brite Divinity’s Moore facility was named in honor of Moore and his wife, Jo Ann, in 1997. Rockefeller served as a TCU Trustee from 1979 – 1984 and from 1986 – 2004. He became a trustee emeritus in 2004. Rockefeller, who was a graduate of the Ranch Management program, served as president of the Ranch Management Alumni Association and chair of the Ranch Management Campaign. The Ranch Management facility bears Rockefeller’s name. Bass, who served as an honorary TCU Trustee, was a longtime supporter of the university. He was instrumental in the founding of the Sid Richardson Foundation, and was a founding member of the Addison & Randolph Clark Society.

The next trustee meeting is scheduled for February 2007.

Editor’s note: a sampling of TCU’s significant activities follows.
 
College of Science & Engineering
The TCU Institute of Child Development
The institute is rapidly gaining a national and international reputation for the development of research-based interventions for vulnerable children, and those who have been harmed by trauma, abuse and neglect.

Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences
School of Nurse Anesthesia
Graduated first 53 students in Dec. ’05 with a 96 percent pass rate on state licensing exams. Recently accredited for 10 years, the School is the fourth largest program in the nation.

College of Communication
Schieffer Symposium
1959 alumni and CBS Newsman Bob Schieffer hosts an on campus annual event featuring well-known national media discussing pertinent media issues.

Neeley School of Business
Educational Investment Fund
Provides undergraduates and graduates experience in investments and portfolio management.

College of Fine Arts
Juilliard partnership
Veda Kaplinsky, chief of piano at Juilliard School of Music, will teach students in the School of Music in the campus and online

AddRan College of Humanities & Social Sciences
Center for Civic Literacy
Teaches the value of social capital and community commitment through the Civic Literacy course, as well as internships, conferences and learning circles.


TCU faculty, students and staff volunteer more than 60,000 hours in the community. Examples include:

• Junior class students built a Habitat for Humanity house for a family of political refugees from Africa
• P.E. revolution program in FWISD schools encourages students to exercise through use of video games, climbing walls and other  modern exercise equipment
• The Neeley School of Business offers a financial boot camp for high school students
  

Media contact:
Tracy Syler-Jones
Assistant vice chancellor for marketing & communication
817-257-7811
s.syler-jones@tcu.edu