Local News Headlines: June 15, 2023

Ivy Tech Community College sets tuition and fees for two years
Two-thirds of students will see overall cost reduction
Today, the Ivy Tech Community College (College) State Board of Trustees passed the College’s tuition and fees for the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic years. The end result will be lower tuition and fees for about two-thirds of the College’s students, and Ivy Tech remains the lowest tuition in the State of Indiana with the lowest overall cost of attendance.

Ivy Tech uses a banded tuition structure, which means students enrolling in 12 or more credit hours pay the same tuition regardless of the number of credits in which they enroll. This structure encourages students to graduate faster, improve their academic performance, and reduce the overall cost of their education. Banded tuition and mandatory fees for 2023-2024 will go from $2,318.25 per semester to $2,455.76 for 2023-2024 and $2,577.11 for 2024-2025.

Ivy Tech is changing the structure of two fees to be incorporated into the tuition rate for 2023-24; those include a $75 per semester mandatory technology fee and a $20 per credit hour distance education fee for select modalities including classes taught through IvyOnline. Students will no longer be charged separate fees for these.

This fee structure will improve transparency in costs and provide equity in how tuition and fees are applied across student populations. This will create savings for many students as this fee had historically been charged to all students rather than being proportional to the number of credits in which a student was enrolled. The $20 per credit hour distance education fee for select modalities including classes taught through IvyOnline is also eliminated. This fee was charged to 75 percent of students in the past academic year.

Ivy Tech has found many innovative ways to save students on the overall cost of college; some examples include frozen tuition and free textbooks for the past two academic years. For the 2023-2024 academic year, students will pay $17 per-credit hour for all textbooks and that cost will be reduced to $16.50 in the following year. This model will save Ivy Tech students more than $17 million dollars annually in textbook costs.

Additionally, federal and state financial aid has been increasing, so students with the most financial need will still have free community college in Indiana. The federal Pell Grant provides students with up to $3,698 per semester ($7,395 per year), which is more than the proposed Ivy Tech tuition and fees. Additionally, the State of Indiana has generous financial aid programs for students, including the Frank O’Bannon award, which provides students at Ivy Tech with up to $2,350 per semester ($4,700 per year), the 21st Century Scholars Award, which covers full tuition and fees, the Adult Student Grant, and the Workforce Ready Grant. These programs combined with Ivy Tech’s commitment to affordability help four out of every five Ivy Tech students complete with no debt.

For Everyone In Indiana – Arts Project Support Review 
In 2022, the IAC took the critical step of looking deeply at our programs, services, and operations, starting with an evaluation of the Arts Organization Support grant program. Read more about the process to review the Arts Organization Support Program. Following this review, the IAC will now complete a similar evaluation of the Arts Project Support (APS) program. The IAC has enlisted the support of external consultants Ruby Lopez Harper and Sara Peterson to guide this process and provide recommendations for strengthening the impact of the program on applicants, the agency, and the State of Indiana. 

If you are interested in sharing your perspectives on the APS program and the future of project support for arts and creativity, there are four upcoming opportunities for you to participate. Each of the following virtual input sessions will last 90 minutes and will be facilitated by the consultant team

Multi-year project to eradicate invasive species in Griffy Lake deemed successful
An April survey of aquatic plants in Griffy Lake highlighted the Department’s successful, multi-year campaign to remove invasive Eurasian watermilfoil and curly leaf pondweed from Griffy Lake. Eurasian watermilfoil was identified as a primary species of concern in Griffy Lake as early as 2008. Densely matted beds of this invasive species can displace native plants and interfere with fishing and other recreational activities.

Parks & Recreation utilized Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) program funds from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources over the past several years to survey and treat invasive species. Ongoing selective herbicide treatments, plus last summer’s drawdown of Griffy Lake, contributed to the eradication of Eurasian watermilfoil and curly leaf pondweed.

To prevent reintroduction of Eurasian watermilfoil and other invasive plants to Griffy Lake, visitors should inspect private watercraft before entering Griffy Lake, and remove all aquatic plants and animals from boats and equipment. Allow watercraft and equipment to dry out of the water for at least five days between trips to Griffy Lake, and never empty terrariums or aquariums into any native body of water.

The Hoosier Responder Latest issue
Hear from local, state and federal officials as they discuss what happened on the night of the March/April tornadoes and the next steps to help their communities recover. “After the Storm” is one of many stories showcasing Hoosiers in May’s “Hoosier Responder” magazine. 

May edition of the Hoosier Responder

This Week in Hoosier History

GRC Memorial

1936 President Franklin D. Roosevelt was in Vincennes to dedicate the George Rogers Clark Memorial. In his speech, the President said that Clark “saved for us the fair land between the mountains and the Father of the Waters.” 

Follow us on Facebook

Image result for Facebook button

For more local news . . . Check out our archived episodes of What’s Happenin’ and Talkin’ Sports with Nick Jenkinson