In an effort to bring some relief to students struggling financially, Gov. Spencer Cox proposed the idea to freeze college tuition throughout Utah.
At his monthly news conference, Cox said he was still not in support of President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan and reinforced his belief that higher education should be made more affordable. Cox says that Utah is on the lower end of education costs throughout the nation and has some of the lowest student loan rates compared to other colleges throughout the country.
Believing it would be more effective at helping people, Cox proposed the idea of a tuition freeze, saying that tuition shouldn’t be increased next school year. According to Cox, officials have been generous with funding higher education, but state universities and colleges could “do a little more with less.”
Lisa Michele Church, Utah Board of Higher Education Chair, says that the board evaluates tuition and fees for Utah’s colleges on an annual basis, concerned with keeping college accessible and affordable for all students.
Church agrees with Cox by saying that inflation has impacted finances of families throughout the nation and as a way to combat it, the board is willing to work with Cox and the Utah Legislature with this new proposal so that higher education can remain within reach.
