Yielding to the state system's tuition freeze, Slippery Rock University officials have rescinded the tuition increase they requested earlier this year.

At its April 29 meeting, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education approved a recommended tuition freeze across all of its 14 universities.

SRU President William Behre said university officials had decided before the PASSHE meeting to rescind their request for a 3.5 percent increase, which was made at a board of trustees meeting before the pandemic struck.

Thursday's meeting was the first quarterly board of trustees meeting since the request for the tuition increase, and the board unanimously approved to officially rescind the request.

Molly Mercer, SRU's chief financial officer, presented updated information for the 2019-20 fiscal year during a finance committee meeting Thursday.

Mercer's report corroborated estimated financial impacts reported by Behre last week. The university stands to see a net loss of more than $3 million. SRU's affiliates stand to lose a net value of around $4 million for a combined total of around $7 million.

Mercer's report also showed $9.3 million in refunds given to students in the first week of April to offset the costs of the spring semester. She said the refunds reflected the fees student would pay if they were on campus, including housing, meals and parking as a few examples.

This is an excerpt from a larger article that appears in Friday's Butler Eagle. Subscribe online or in print to read the full article.