For Immediate Release

Contact: Anthony Twyman
Public Relations Coordinator
Community College of Philadelphia
Office: (215) 751-8082
atwyman@ccp.edu

COMMUNITY COLLEGE OF PHILADELPHIA GIVES ADDITIONAL $1 MILLION IT RECEIVED FROM THE CITY BACK TO ITS STUDENTS

PHILADELPHIA, July 27, 2006 - Philadelphia residents who attend Community College of Philadelphia will receive a one-time credit off their tuition this year thanks to an additional $1 million the city has provided the College.

The College family thanks the Mayor and City Council and an acknowledgment of the additional city support will be noted on students' tuition bills. The Mayor and City Council approved the budget increase after students, faculty and administrators at the College requested the city provide more funding to the school this fiscal year.

"In direct meetings with both the Mayor and members of City Council, we urged the city to resume a pattern of increasing support for the College and committed that any increase this year would be passed on directly to students," President Stephen M. Curtis said.

At city budget hearings in March, Victor B. Smith Jr., the president of the Student Government Association; Christina Taing, the SGA second vice president; and Carla Lucille Johnson, who returned to college after 24 years in the work world after her employer closed, also appealed to City Council for help.

As a result, the city's fiscal year 2006-2007 budget allocation to the College is $23.4 million. Last year, it was $22.4 million. Community College of Philadelphia will continue to work to keep its tuition affordable. Currently, tuition for Philadelphia residents is $112 per credit hour. In-state residents pay $224 per credit hour and out-of-state residents pay $336 per credit hour. A Philadelphia resident taking a single three-credit-hour course (the typical number of credit hours per course) pays $336. The one-time "city tuition credit" will reduce tuition for Philadelphia residents only by $3 per credit hour for 2006-2007.

"I want to thank all the students, faculty and staff who advocated for more city support throughout the spring months. Your efforts have directly helped our students," President Stephen M. Curtis said.