Trustees Keep Reins on Tuition
	The 1998-99 tuition set by the Ithaca College Board of Trustees represents the lowest rate of increase at the College since the 1969-70 school year. At its February meeting the board approved a tuition hike of 4.5 percent --- or $762 --- to $17,662. With standard room and board charges of $7,652 and health insurance at $245, the total bill to attend Ithaca College next year will be $25,559. In a letter to students' parents announcing the charges, Ithaca College president Peggy R. Williams wrote that the tuition increase reflects the College's continued commitment to maintaining and enhancing the College's outstanding academic programs while at the same time working to strictly control costs. "We will make capital expenditures to improve technology on campus, upgrade facilities, and provide equipment that will insure a quality experience for our students. We also continue to work toward making an Ithaca College education accessible for all students and have increased our financial aid budget to help meet the needs of our students and their families." Williams pointed out that work is well under way on a new facility for the School of Health Sciences and Human Performance and on the James J. Whalen Center for Music, and noted that within the next year construction will begin on a new student fitness center and an observatory. "As I enter into my eighth month as president of Ithaca, I continue to be impressed with the quality and vitality of our student body and with the care and commitment of our faculty and staff," Williams wrote. "In order to maintain our tradition of excellence, we work hard to continue to attract external private support for the College from alumni, friends, parents, foundations, and corporations. Our Parents Fund plays a vital role in our capital campaign and Annual Fund efforts and helps us to attract special grants from corporations and foundations. On behalf of the College, I thank all of you who contribute your resources and energies to the Parents Fund." For over 20 years Ithaca College has annually surveyed the tuition charges of a group of 20 regionally competitive private institutions. A chart accompanying the letter to parents illustrated that Ithaca's tuition for 1998-99 will be lower even than the 1997-98 charges for all but two of those institutions, which have yet to announce their increases for next year.