Expanded Story: Non-Residential Tuition Rate

The Board of Trustees voted 7–1 to approve a Colorado High School/GED Nonresident Tuition Rate and received a standing ovation from the more than 200 MSU Denver community members, state legislators and others, who had gathered for the June 7 meeting.

This new tuition rate, proposed by President Stephen Jordan, applied to students living in the state of Colorado, who through no fault of their own, did not have the lawful status to be eligible for resident tuition rates.

Hector was one such student. He testified that his father had brought him to the United States when he was 14 years old. He had always been a good student and dreamed of attending college. Now, he had a chance.

“This will allow me to attend classes on the main campus and is a path to citizenship,” he said.

The new tuition rate was higher than the resident tuition but significantly lower than the out-of-state rate. It was not funded through any taxpayer subsidies.

To be eligible, students had to meet three criteria beyond the existing admissions requirements. They needed to have attended a Colorado high school for at least three years; graduated from a Colorado high school or received a general equivalency diploma in the state; and provided a statement that they were in good legal standing, other than their undocumented or unclassified status, and were seeking or intended to seek lawful status when eligible.

The board’s action ultimately helped prompt the Colorado State Legislature to pass the ASSET bill in 2013.