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Increases in college costs worry officials

Christian Johnson didn’t have to reach inside his pockets to pay for college last year.

Grants and a band scholarship bankrolled his education at South Carolina State University. It appeared Johnson would graduate college without owing anybody anything.

But things have changed.

In the midst of a dark financial climate, S.C. State — like many other institutions — had to raise its tuition and fees this fall.

Johnson said he was forced to take out $4,000 in student loans to attend S.C. State, which is among the least expensive four-year institutions in the state.

“It was a lot tougher than last year,” Johnson said.

He said there’s a lot of financial aid available “but there’s only so much you can get.”

If paying for college is now this hard for a seemingly financially secure student like Johnson, it raises the question: Is college becoming unaffordable in South Carolina?

For state Rep. Jerry Govan, D-Orangeburg, the answer to that multi-million question is “yes.”

“My concern is whether we are pricing people out of the market at a time in which clearly a sound education is critical to acquiring a job,” he said. “It’s important for the state to develop intellectual capital. You can’t do that if people can’t afford to go college.”

College tuition costs have skyrocketed as the state’s support for public institutions has declined.

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