Rick Perry Calls for Four-Year Tuition Freeze, Other Initiatives

Texas’ governor has announced initiatives to help meet the state’s growing demand for higher education.

Governor Rick Perry outlined his initiatives for the upcoming legislative session, which he says will help improve accessibility, accountability, and affordability in higher education.

Perry has called for a four-year tuition freeze for incoming freshmen, funding state institutions based on outcomes, and increasing fiscal transparency for students and their families.

One of the initiatives includes tying 10 percent of an institution’s state funding to the number of students it graduates. In a press release, Perry’s office states that less than 30 percent of students at four-year institutions graduate in four years, with only 58 percent graduating in six years.

He also calls for institutions to be more up front with costs, to allow students and families to know the financial cost of delayed graduation, and challenged institutions to strive to offer bachelor’s degrees for $10,000 or less, including books, by making their systems more efficient. Currently, nine state institutions offer a $10,000 degree.

“More and more young Texans of all backgrounds are thinking of college as a vital component of their personal success and they’re taking active steps to get themselves there,” said Perry.

“Implementing these measures will meet the growing demand for higher education in a way that provides encouragement for students to complete their degree in a timely fashion and with financial certainty.”

The legislative session will begin on Tuesday, January 8th, 2013 at noon.