Community College Foreign Students’ Tuition Hike Rejected

Swayed by a group of students from Pierce College, Los Angeles community college trustees rejected a proposed tuition hike for fall that would have affected all 2,400 foreign students in the district.

After hearing presentations from four foreign students from Pierce as well as the campus’ student body president, the district’s board of trustees voted 6 to 0 Wednesday night to keep the current foreign student fee structure, saving a typical student $72 to $90 a year.

“It does make a difference,” said Gamini Siriwardane, a 21-year-old marketing major from Sri Lanka who is president of the campus’ International Students Club. “Now when I ask my mom for money, at least I can say, ‘Hey, it didn’t go up.’ ”

Siriwardane, who came to the United States in 1994 and hopes to transfer to Cal State Northridge in the fall, said the tuition savings represents more than enough money to run a household for a month in his country.

And Josh Crook, the associated students president at Pierce who helped the foreign students push their cause, said they deserve a break because they generally work hard, get good grades and rarely drop out. “They’re not going to mess around.”

Trustees increased foreign student fees for the fall 1995 semester. Fees for California residents did not increase in 1995 and are expected to hold steady this year.

In their presentation, Pierce students argued that another hike would drive many of the district’s foreign students--along with the $6 million they annually pay in fees--to surrounding community college districts with lower rates.

Their pitch came at a time when the district’s overall enrollment has been plummeting, causing officials to focus on ways to retain students. Since 1992, the district’s foreign student enrollment has dropped 20% from a high of 2,989.

While California residents attend community college at heavily subsidized rates, foreign students generally pay full cost. A full year at a community college costs a local resident $390 in tuition and a foreign student nearly $4,300.

Foreign students pay about $143 per unit. The district had proposed a $3 per unit increase. A typical student takes 24 to 30 units per year.

At last tally, the biggest share of foreign students came from Asian nations, including Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Pierce College, at last count, had about 225 students from other countries.