Dear Campus Community,
We want to let you know that the Ithaca College Board of Trustees has approved recommendations for the 2020–21 academic year for tuition, room and board. The members of the senior leadership team worked in close collaboration with the Institutional Effectiveness and Budget Committee (IEBC) to provide recommendations to the board which reflected and aligned with the college’s commitment to the student experience and our intentional work to balance affordability with institutional sustainability.
Tuition
Tuition for academic year 2020–21 will be set at $46,611, an increase of 2.95 percent over the 2019-20 academic year. This percentage increase is the same as last year’s, reflecting the senior leadership team and IEBC’s prioritization of affordability, which is critical to the success of the college's strategic plan, Ithaca Forever.
Room
For ’20–’21, the average increase for on-campus housing will be 2.35 percent—the same percentage increase as last year—with a rate of $8,978 for a standard double room. Given that the implementation of the college's facilities master plan is a significant part of Ithaca Forever, our approach to pricing for housing next academic year will be evaluated to reflect our progress as we continue to improve our physical plant.
Board
As our community is aware, the college has made major changes over the course of the year to invest deeply in our dining program to not only provide the highest quality of food and service to our students, but also to be a leader in this area. We are continuing to strive toward this goal. Last year, board costs were cut by 2.8 percent as we transitioned to our in-house program. For academic year ’20–’21, the cost for dining has been set at $6,868, a 1 percent increase over last year ($68). This very modest increase will enable the college to continue to invest in the development and redesign of our program.
Institutional Aid
Decisions about tuition, room, and board are necessarily made in conjunction with decisions around institutional aid, to ensure that families with demonstrated financial need can access meaningful resources in order to attend Ithaca College. This year, more than 90 percent of our students are receiving institutional aid, totaling more than $130 million.
We know that the coming years will bring tremendous challenge and opportunity for Ithaca College, as we align all facets of our institutional operations with our deeply student-centered strategic plan, Ithaca Forever. The board and the senior leadership team look forward to continuing to work with the college community as we collectively prioritize a robust, innovative student experience and move IC thoughtfully and intentionally toward a sustainable, successful future.
Sincerely,
David H. Lissy ’87
Chair, Ithaca College Board of Trustees
Shirley M. Collado
President