Kansas Regents Approve 8.2% Tuition Hike

The Kansas Board of Regents has approved tuition hikes from 3.6-8.2 percent for students at the state's public universities.

The largest hike will be implemented at the University of Kansas, where students will pay 8.2 percent more, or $306, per semester. Administrators say they need the increase in funds to pay for academic programs.

BusinessWeek has more on the lead-up to the decision:

Regent Ed McKechnie said Kansas must either raise taxes to put more money in education, ask students and parents to pay more at the door, or reduce the quality of programs and offerings.

"The first choice has already been made," said McKechnie, of Pittsburg, referring to the Legislature's decision to increase the statewide sales tax by 1 percent starting July 1. "Clearly, revenues have to come from somewhere."

The increased sales tax should garner $314 million in an effort to abate education cuts.

Will this tuition hike affect you? What's going on at your school? Weigh in below.