Tuition at St. Petersburg College to increase 8 percent

     SPC’s Board of Trustees has approved tuition hikes of 8 percent. Unless vetoed by the governor, in-state tuition for lower division courses will go to $94.08 per credit hour, up from $87.12. In-state tuition for upper division courses will be $101.72 per credit hour, up from $94.95.

     Out-of-state residents will now pay $341.65 per credit hour for lower division courses, and $391.93 per credit hours for upper division courses. The new tuition rates take effect beginning fall 2010.

     Tuition at SPC is still a better deal than at state universities, where the average in-state cost per credit hour is $145. Most of the institutions have indicated they will increase their tuition by as much as 15 percent for the coming year, leaving SPC as a solid choice for students pursuing undergraduate degrees.

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Summer enrollment headcount at St. Petersburg College up 10.9 percent over summer 2009

Summer enrollment at St. Petersburg College has never been higher. At the end of the drop/add period (first week of summer classes), headcount is up 10.9 percent, to 18,467 students over the previous summer term.

Pat Rinard, Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management, said the increased enrollment is primarily due to the downturn in the economy.

The sharp increase follows a trend that began at the college in fall 2009-10 when headcount was up 9.2 percent. In the spring, headcount was up 13.6 percent.

“When the economy suffers, people tend to go back to school and retool (gain new skills),” Rinard said. “The state universities in Florida have been increasing their admissions standards while at the same time placing caps on enrollment in many of their programs. All of this has led to our largest enrollment ever.”

Full Time Equivalency (FTE) enrollment this term also has grown 15.5 percent, increasing from 3,107 to 3,587. This increase puts SPC in the middle of the pack among other Florida colleges, Rinard said. Some state colleges in Florida have experienced enrollment increases of 7-8 percent, while other have experienced increases upwards of 25 percent.

FTE is calculated by the number of credits each student takes. To be considered full time, a student must be enrolled in nine credit hours during the summer and 12 credit hours during the fall or spring terms. The primary use of FTE for colleges in Florida is to decide how much funding will be received from the state.
 
“I expect that this will continue this fall and likely for the spring 2011 term as well,” Rinard said. “As the economy begins to improve, we will not sustain our current enrollment growth pattern.”

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St. Petersburg College employees to get 4.5 percent pay increase

The SPC Board of Trustees approved a 4.5 percent across-the-board pay increase for all budgeted employees, as well for OPS employees and student assistants. The raise is in recognition of hard work as well as a thank you for keeping true to SPC’s core mission of teaching and learning.

Here is a summary of how the increase will be implemented in the 2010-11 fiscal year for the different pay groups:

• Hourly employees
  July 2 paycheck – no adjustment because this is for the bi-weekly period ending June 25.
  July 16 paycheck – 4.5 percent increase applied for most of the pay period (compensation for the work days of June 26-30 will be at the 2009-10 level; must have been actively employed at the college as of June 30, 2010).
  July 30 paycheck – full 4.5 percent increase applied for entire pay period.NOTE: Because July has three pay days, most deductions will not be taken on July 30.  This means that your pay may seem artificially high because any normal deductions are not being taken.
• Career Service-exempt employees/counselors/librarians/A&P employees with July 1 contract date
  July 2 paycheck – no adjustment will be made because it refers to the prior fiscal year.
  July 16 paycheck – 4.5 percent increase applied; this is the first of 26 equal pays for work in the 2010-11 contract year (must have been actively employed at the college as of June 30, 2010).
• Faculty/academic chairs
  Aug. 13 paycheck – 4.5 percent increase applied; this is the first of 26 equal pays for work in the 2010-11 contract year (must have been actively employed at the college as of June 30, 2010).
• OPS employees
  July 30 paycheck – 2009-10 hourly rate will be increased by 4.5 percent.
• Student assistants
  Sept. 10 paycheck – 2009-10 hourly rate will be increased by 4.5 percent.

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Dr. Bill Law begins presidency of St. Petersburg College on June 7

Dr. Bill Law Jr. will begin his SPC presidency June 7. Law and the SPC Board of Trustees have agreed to his employment contract, which runs through June 30, 2013. Law’s performance will be evaluated annually.

Dr. Bill Law discusses student governance with Clearwater Campus SGA President Kelliann Ganoo during a visit with Clearwater Campus students.

Law’s base salary will be $330,000 a year, and the college will contribute up to $85,000 a year toward an annuity for his retirement. In addition, the college will provide a vehicle.

From 1981 to 1988, Law was vice president of institutional and program planning at what was then St. Petersburg Junior College. He also taught courses in microcomputer applications, as well as a freshman composition course.

Before joining SPC, Law served as president of Tallahassee Community College since 2002. During his time at TCC, the college broke ground on the 85,000-square foot Ghazvini Center for Health Care Education, which will allow students to study diagnostic medical sonography, emergency medical services, nursing, radiologic technology and respiratory care through cutting edge technology.

The college also established the Florida Public Safety Institute and the Advanced Manufacturing Training Center, a joint effort between TCC and the Economic Development Council of Tallahassee and Leon County.

Law also spent 10 years as the first president of Montgomery College (now Lone Star College—Montgomery) in Texas. In addition to planning and developing the college, Law designed the first university center for the college district, resulting in a 78,000-square foot facility at Montgomery College that offers 28 bachelors and 26 masters degrees through a consortium of six Texas universities.

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Clearwater campus to host debate on Amendment Four

SPC’s Clearwater campus will host a debate on Amendment Four to the Florida Constitution on Wednesday, May 26 at 11 a.m. in the Arts Auditorium. Amendment Four, also known as “Hometown Democracy,” will be on the November ballot.  It has implications for the environment as well as for economic development in the state.

George Niemann and Jill Yelverton will speak on behalf of the Amendment. Kathleen Peters, mayor of South Pasadena, and  Ward Friszolowski, former mayor of St. Pete Beach, will present the opposition.

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SPC Spring graduation ceremonies

More than 850 graduates crossed the stage at Tropicana Field on Saturday morning during the historic 112th SPC Commencement ceremony. The count was up from last May, when there were 765. Before that, the spring 2008 record was 653.

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SPC Apollo Award – 2010 Winner: Samantha Mitchell

The Apollo Award, given each year since 1966, is presented by the St. Petersburg College Alumni Association to the outstanding associate degree graduate. Winners are chosen for their leadership, scholastic standing, community service, honors and awards.

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SPC Alumni Achievement Award – 2010 Winner: Julie Barnes

This is the first time the Alumni Achievement Award was presented. It was created by the SPC Alumni Association, Inc. Board of Directors in recognition of the talented students now graduating SPC at the baccalaureate level. Winners are chosen for their outstanding leadership abilities, scholastic standing, community service, honors and awards.

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SPC Spring graduation ceremonies

More than 850 graduates crossed the stage at Tropicana Field on Saturday morning during the historic 112th SPC Commencement ceremony. The count was up from last May, when there were 765. Before that, the spring 2008 record was 653.

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Astronaut Nicole Stott’s commencement address to St. Petersburg College graduates

Astronaut Nicole Stott speaks to graduates at St. Petersburg College’s commencement exercises on Saturday, May 8. Stott is a Clearwater native who graduated from Clearwater High School and attended SPC. Her first NASA space mission was last year, when she spent about four months on the International Space Station.

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