RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky University’s board of trustees approved a budget of $ 379.5 million for fiscal 2022 at its June 17 meeting. Among the most significant new investments to promote affordability, access and student success, nearly $ 6 million has been set aside to fund the EKU BookSmart program. For the first time in the history of the institution, new and returning EKU undergraduates will receive all required textbooks and course materials available for the first day of the fall semester courses in August, at no additional cost to students.

An investment of $ 4.9 million will reallocate funding for additional 2021-2022 scholarships. New FY2022 investments also offer increased support for eCampus programs, base employee salary increases, faculty promotions, a center of excellence in STEM, student athletic opportunities, a new ” one-stop shop ”and a call center for centralized student support services and additional resources on diversity, equity and inclusion.

The council also set the tuition, accommodation, meals and fees rates for 2021-2022. EKU followed the parameters of the Council for Post-Secondary Education (CPE) and limited a 2021-2022 tuition increase to 2% or $ 8 per credit hour ($ 93 per semester for an undergraduate student on time full, in the state). Prices for university accommodation and restaurants will increase overall by around 2% for accommodation; and about 1.2% for meals according to contractual requirements. Even with these modest increases, the overall cost of attending EKU will further decrease with the removal of textbook costs from an average of $ 1,200 per year which will now be covered by the BookSmart program.