Displaced Katrina Students to Receive Out-of-State Tuition Waiver this Fall from USG
Atlanta — September 7, 2005
The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia today approved measures waiving non-resident tuition during Fall 2005 for students enrolled in out-of-state colleges and universities affected by Hurricane Katrina. The board also voted to defer tuition and housing costs for these students on a space-available basis.
“Many students who have enrolled in our institutions on an emergency basis during the past week already have paid tuition and fees at their own colleges and universities,” said William Bowes, the University System of Georgia’s vice chancellor for fiscal affairs. “Our institutions are asking the displaced students for documentation of their enrollment or acceptance, and we will seek reimbursement from their institutions at a later date.”
“These students have been through a terrible ordeal and now need to get on with their lives,” added Tonya Lam, the USG’s associate vice chancellor for student affairs. “We want to remove any barriers preventing them from continuing their education during this traumatic time in their lives.”
The temporary policies adopted at today’s meeting of the Board of Regents are retroactive to Aug. 30, 2005, and will expire on Dec. 31, 2005, unless the board decides to extend them before that date. The measures apply only to students who were enrolled in or had been accepted to institutions located in areas affected by the Category Five hurricane that struck the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29.
In addition to waiving out-of-state tuition and deferring the cost of tuition, room and board, the temporary policies also clear the way for USG institutions to defer the usual immunization requirements for these students.
In a related move supporting the state’s hurricane relief efforts, the board also formally approved a policy allowing USG institutions to use appropriate campus facilities as temporary shelters for hurricane evacuees – a measure already in practice – noting that non-students should not be housed in the same facilities as students, due to liability issues.
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