{Lexington, Kentucky}...The University of Kentucky board of trustees voted Tuesday to increase student tuition by 6 percent for the upcoming academic year, bringing the total cost of tuition, fees and housing for in-state undergraduates to $16,518 a year. In the past 10 years, UK tuition has increased 147 percent. According to a recent study, UK's in-state tuition now is more than in-state tuition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Texas at Austin. Trustee Jo Hern Curris pointed out that while the Council on Postsecondary Education allowed UK to raise tuition up to 6 percent, it wasn't required to do so. Curris said that after this year, she no longer could support 6 percent increases and that she was pleased to see that a 3 percent tuition increase is being proposed for 2013-14. The change for in-state tuition for underclassmen will be $274, from $4,564 to $4,838, per semester in the 2012-13 academic year. Upper division students will also see costs climb from $4,696 to $4,978. University President Eli Capilouto says declining state support, research funding and endowment resources have strained the university budget, prompting the tuition increase.
