By Wally Kennedy

wkennedy@joplinglobe.com

Students at Missouri Southern State University for the second year in a row won’t see an increase in tuition or academic fees.

But this time, keeping tuition flat at Southern will come with some belt tightening to the tune of $1.2 million in reduced state appropriations for the university in fiscal 2011. The fiscal year starts July 1, 2010.

Welcome news

Not surprisingly, students at Southern welcomed the news.

Kierra Fowler, a sophomore, said: “I’m paying for school with student loans. Plus, I don’t have a job right now, so it’s really hard for me to pay for living expenses like food. Anything can help.”

Garrett Shank, a sophomore studying market advertising, said he thought the school’s image in the area would be helped by not raising tuition.

“I’m transferring next year, but I still think it’s a good idea,” he said. “I think the school is having a harder time drawing students now. This will keep the school more competitive with other schools around the area like Pittsburg (Kan.) State.”

Chris White, a junior studying environmental health, and Heather Mustain, a sophomore studying medical technology, also said not raising tuition would help enrollment at the university.

“I’m paying for school out of my own pocket,” said White. “So this is good news for me. It’s a key point that tuition wouldn’t change next year.”

Mustain said: “I’ve got student loans, so I’m glad if it doesn’t go up, too. With the financial aid I’m receiving now, I’ll be able to pocket more money for other school expenses like books. Those prices go up, so it’s nice if tuition would stay the same.”

While building platforms for a production of “Schoolhouse Rock,” Thorr Miller, a junior, said: “That’s absolutely great. The less I have to pay, the happier I am.”

Conditions

On Tuesday, Gov. Jay Nixon said an agreement had been reached with the presidents of the state’s four-year public institutions to freeze tuition for in-state, undergraduate students in the 2010-11 school year. The agreement is subject to approval by the General Assembly and the institutions’ governing boards.