By Tammy Gray Tuition at Northland Pioneer College (NPC) will decrease for Navajo County residents, while increasing slightly for in-state residents of other counties and for out-of-state students. The new in-district tuition, which applies only to residents of Navajo County, is set at just $65 per credit hour for school year 2021-2022, and $68 per credit hour for the 2022-2023 school year. That is down from the $79 per credit hour charged in the 2020-2021 school year for both in and out-of-county residents, although the college did temporarily offer half price tuition as a result of the pandemic. The college district governing board approved the tuition changes during a meeting on Thursday, March 11, where they heard an update on the financial status of the school and approved a salary increase for staff. State residents outside of Navajo County, including those in Apache County, will see a slight increase from $79 to $82 per credit hour in 2021-2022, with rates rising slightly again in 2022-23 to $85 per credit hour. “It continues to be one of the lowest tuition rates in the state,” NPC Vice President for Administrative Services Maderia Ellison remarked. Out of state rates will increase as well. Currently at $380 per credit hour for the 2020-2021 school year, they will rise to $395 in 2021-2022, and $410 in 2022-23. Several board members raised concerns about verifying residence within Navajo County, but ultimately voted to approve the change, with the exception of Frank Lucero. Lucero noted that he would like to see the plan for ensuring that only residents receive the reduced rate before approving the change. “No. Because it’s premature and it hasn’t been worked out yet,” he said. A five percent salary increase for nearly all staff was also approved by the board during the meeting, although the exact amount and how it is applied will vary depending on each employee’s classification and position on the pay scale. “This takes into consideration inflation, increasing medical costs, and the dedication and loyalty of employees, Ellison said, noting that staff’s willingness to quickly adjust to online teaching allowed the school to continue operations throughout the year. “We couldn’t have done it this year, continuing to meet our student needs, without our employees.” The complete package will cost the district approximately $1.28 million, including benefits and taxes, according to Ellison. For most staff members, the increase will be calculated as moving two steps up the pay scale for an approximate three percent increase, and a two percent adjustment to the base salaries in the pay scale. Adjunct faculty and staff who are already at the top of their salary schedule will receive a two percent increase. In other business, the governing board: * Heard a report on the school’s financial position. Ellison told the board that revenues are very similar to last year, but the need to severely restrict spending has lessened as the effects of the pandemic are receding to a certain extent. “The sky didn’t fall,” she said. * Reviewed an introductory budget analysis for the 2021-2022 school year. The board has until June 5 to adopt a preliminary budget. Ellison explained that the board will need to make a decision on property tax rates. In addition, staff is still analyzing potential income and expenditures. She noted that at this point staff is expecting to see approximately $508,000 in revenue from recreational marijuana sales. “That will help meet the needs for workforce development,” she said. “It is a restricted fund. There are parameters attached.” * Approved the purchase of new Cisco routers to replace ones that will be aging out at an approximate cost of $200,536. * Approved the appointment of Jeremy Raisor as the Northeastern Arizona Training Center (NATC) board chairman. * Approved the appointment of external hearing officers, including Prudence Lee, Pierce Coleman and Don Peters, all of Phoenix, as well as C. Benson Hufford of Tucson, and James Mannato of Queen Creek. The next regular board meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Tuesday, April 20, via videoconference on Zoom. Agenda materials and a link to the meeting are available at www.npc.edu. A series of special meetings to conduct interviews of candidates for the president’s position will be held on March 22-24 in person at the Tiponi Community Center at the Painted Desert Campus in Holbrook. An additional meeting will be held via Zoom at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 30, with complete information available at www.npc.edu.
