Angry students knock some cents into NCCU

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NCCU tuition and fees may rise

N.C. Central University students could see their tuition bills go up $200 next fall if a proposal endorsed by a trustee committee Tuesday wins support of the full board today.

Students also might have to pay more for health care, athletics and technology. And, in some cases, student meal plans could go up by nearly $200, too.

The University of North Carolina Board of Governors outlined rough guidelines in October for tuition and fee increases across the 16-campus system. Under that recommendation, NCCU could have boosted rates by as much as $322, or nearly 10 percent of the $3,095 that in-state students currently pay annually for tuition and fees.

Log on and learn

North Carolina school districts are plagued with recession-related budget problems. One tactic being used to keep up academic momentum, especially in poorer, rural districts, is online instruction. It's a cost-efficient way to broaden high schools' course offerings, even during a time when pennies are being pinched.

But the state's "Virtual Public School" program could itself wind up on the chopping block. That would be penny-wise and pound-foolish.

The online courses are popular. As The N&O recently reported, enrollment this fall tops 15,000 students, almost double the number from last spring. And for the spring semester next year, 20,000 students are expected to sign up. Many take advantage of advanced and specialized courses not typically available in the state's smaller communities -- instruction in Chinese, for instance.

WHAT'S NEXT 1130028064963989

Here what's ahead for NCCU if it wants to move up to Division I:

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NCCU awards to honor saxophonist

The estate of a founding member of the Dave Matthews Band has funded a scholarship for students at N.C. Central University.

The Leroi H. Moore Scholarship Fund will provide $5,000 scholarships annually for four students.

Moore played bass, baritone, tenor, alto and soprano saxophones, as well as the flute, bass clarinet, wooden penny whistle and oboe.

UNC system mandates health insurance

For four years, Alisa Eanes chose textbooks over Pap smears.

As one of the thousands of UNC system students without health insurance, Eanes went without annual physicals or regular gynecological checkups.

"Do I buy my books, or do I go to the doctor?" said Eanes, a 2008 UNC-Chapel Hill graduate now working a temporary job -- without insurance -- at UNC Hospitals. "I had to buy my books."