After a drop in enrollment, Northwest Arkansas Community College’s Board of Trustees voted Monday to waive out-of-state tuition for veterans and to increase the number of tuition waivers for high school students taking NWACC classes.
Board members approved the measures at their regularly-scheduled meeting Monday afternoon in Bentonville, after school administrators had previously reported a 6.1 percent drop in enrollment. School officials hope the measures incentivize more students to attend the school, said Steven Hinds, a school spokesman.
One of the measures increased tuition waivers from 50 percent to 60 percent for high school students taking NWACC classes, meaning those students who had been paying half of regular tuition will now only be required to pay for 40 percent of regular tuition.
Of the 823 high school students taking NWACC classes last fall, 694 took classes through the community college’s Early College Experience program. Seventy high school students took career and technical classes through Early College Experience, while 59 high school students took classes on their own action at NWACC’s campus, Hinds said.
NWACC officials announced Jan. 28 that 7,546 students were enrolled at the school, down 490 from last year.
In-district tuition, for students from Rogers and Bentonville, is set at $75 per credit hour, while out-of-district students who live in Arkansas pay $122.50 per credit hour. Out-of-state students pay $175 per credit hour, while international students’ tuition is set at $175 per credit hour, plus a $15 international student fee, Hinds said.
