Purdue tuition and fees to drop below $10,000 annually

Purdue trustees were already expected to approve a tuition freeze through the 2018-19 academic year at an executive committee meeting Wednesday, but they also announced at the meeting that officials had found a way to slightly reduce fee rates for the next two years.

"Every little bit helps," Purdue President Mitch Daniels said after the meeting.

The $10-per-student decrease will come from a fitness and wellness fee, for which students currently pay $122 per semester, or $244 each year. According to Purdue officials, the rate was originally instituted to support the construction and operation of the France A. Córdova Recreational Sports Center, which was renovated and expanded in 2012.

A recent review prompted by Daniels, however, found that the initial fee estimates generate an annual surplus after construction debt and operational costs are repaid.