ASU to add tuition surcharge, close Lake Havasu campus after state budget cuts
Arizona State University is responding to state budget cuts by adding a tuition surcharge, closing a western Arizona campus and making changes in its support for the Arizona Teachers Academy.
University officials said changes were needed after the Arizona Legislature made across-the-board cuts to Arizona's public university system, resulting in a loss of $24 million for ASU this year.
University President Michael Crow criticized the Legislature's investment in higher education, which makes up less than 9% of the school's budget this year.
"ASU simply cannot be asked to fund the expansion of higher education across the state without state investment as a part of the financial structure to do so," Crow said. "These budget cuts put the state of Arizona even further behind in ensuring that Arizona has the talent and workforce necessary to advance its economy."
On-campus students will see a roughly $350 surcharge in their bill for the spring 2025 semester — that's about a 5% to 6% increase on standard tuition for Arizona residents. Part-time students will see a "proportional amount" added, and online students will not see a surcharge. ASU has kept its tuition increases under the inflation rate for the past eight years.
ASU's Lake Havasu campus will close next summer after opening more than a decade ago. This will affect about 225 students and 20 employees, some of whom may be transferred to other units within the school, according to a news release.
ASU Provost Nancy Gonzales said the school would work with the students affected to move them online or to another campus to complete their degree. The closure also will affect dual-enrollment high school students in the area.
"It's disappointing that state leaders do not see the value of higher education in places like Lake Havasu City," Gonzales said. "ASU will continue to do all that it can to serve that portion of the state through ASU Online and agreements with our community college partners."
Around 800 students will not be served by the Arizona Teachers Academy. The program , which began in 2018, covers students' tuition and fees if they commit to teaching at Arizona schools.
ASU also is expected to lose $10.9 million in funding this year for the Arizona Promise Program , which covers tuition and fees for in-state students from low-income families who attend a public Arizona university. Officials said this could affect more than 2,600 students.
This year's round of state cuts is part of a larger trend. According to the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association, Arizona's state and local funding has fallen by roughly 20% since 1980 . Arizona currently invests less than half of the national average per capita, according to the organization.
At the same time, funding for universities has polled well among Arizona voters. According to a recently released survey from The Center for the Future of Arizona, about 79% of voters support prioritizing state funding for public higher education, including 63% of Republicans, 81% of independent voters and 95% of Democrats.
"For whatever reason, state leaders want the public universities to be tuition-driven, independently funded and to advance on their own," Crow said.
All three of Arizona's public universities are grappling with this year's state funding deductions, including the University of Arizona, which is in the process of trying to close a $63 million budget deficit. The school introduced several cuts over the past year, hoping to balance the budget by 2026.
Helen Rummel covers higher education for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at Follow her on X, formerly Twitter:
