Abbott holds line on tuition

UTRGV says no impact in the near future

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Nov. 13 he would attempt to freeze tuition for public universities and colleges once again for the next two years.

In 2023, Abbott signed a law prohibiting Texas universities and colleges from increasing or decreasing tuition and fees for the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic years, according to a letter sent to Texas colleges and universities by Abbott.

The governor wrote in the Nov. 13 letter he would “not support any tuition increase at any public higher education institution in the upcoming” two years. Abbott wrote Texas has been committed to improving “increased funding for universities and financial aid programs” to make public higher education more affordable. 

Magdalena Hinojosa, UTRGV senior vice president for Strategic Enrollment and Student Affairs, said the university sticks to a baseline budget.

“We have this four-year guarantee,” Hinojosa said. “A student who comes in Fall of 2024 is going to pay the same tuition and mandatory fees for the next four years. So, if and when tuition is ever increased, it doesn’t impact that student or any of the students who would have started Fall 2024 and past.”

She said UTRGV has no plans or “detailed conversations” on increasing tuition.

“Even if there was an increase, it doesn’t impact the budget like at another institution,” Hinojosa said. “… And so for us, when we’re looking at budgets, we already know that our baseline stays pretty stable and slowly would increase over a four-year period to then accommodate that increase in tuition.”

The vice president said when maintaining the budget, there needs to be a “strict and strategic approach.”

“So what we have to make sure that we do then is watch that baseline because electricity doesn’t stay at a baseline,” she said. “Everything we need to do to operate the university doesn’t stay at a baseline. And so, we have to make sure that the budget is accommodating this flat tuition while things increase that we don’t have any control over.”

Hinojosa said the freeze has no effect on financial aid or revenue.

“We’re required by law to set aside 15% of our tuition for financial aid-type programs,” she said. “Well, if your tuition doesn’t go up then, guess what? That particular budget isn’t going to go up.”

Nursing senior Katia Valdez said the freeze could affect her financially.

“Right now I don’t work,” Valdez said. “I rely on [Free Application for Federal Student Aid], and I know that they run out of aid really quickly. And also, with all of the new process the FAFSA has for the people [whose] parents don’t have any Social Security, the process was so long and, at the end, a lot of people said since the FAFSA funds ran out, they didn’t get to have any aid.”

Hinojosa said the university has always attempted to keep tuition at an affordable price.

“We work really hard as an institution to keep costs low and it’s just something that has been one of our priorities and something we’re founded on,” she said. “Does it mean that freezing tuition doesn’t have an impact? No, that’s not the case because it does. But we have always worked hard to live within our means as an institution.”