IU East began offering Ohio resident students in-state rates this past fall after the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and the Ohio Board of Regents approved the Tuition Reciprocity Agreement. The agreement is an attempt to expand postsecondary educational opportunities for area residents while limiting the cost of such expansion to the taxpayers of Ohio and Indiana through collaboration among public higher education institutions.

Previously, IU East charged Darke and Preble county residents in-state rates, under the auspices of the Ohio Option. With approval of the reciprocity, IU East expanded those rates to students from Butler, Mercer, Shelby and Van Wert counties in Ohio. Institutions in Ohio also now offer some Indiana residents their in-state rates as part of the agreement.

Benjamin Young, vice chancellor of enrollment services and dean of students, said the reciprocity agreement provided a means for accommodating Ohio citizens with quality educational services at affordable prices. “The overall benefit for the university is that we serve students in a broader economic service area without regard to their state of residence, therefore we serve a larger part of the economic region,” he said. “For these students, the benefits are enormous. They have access to a high quality institution at an in-state rate.”

The agreement allows a student living in the participating counties to save approximately $215 per credit hour.

Larry Richards, vice chancellor for academic affairs, said the reciprocity agreement is a good alternative for Ohio students. “For the potential students in neighboring Ohio counties that do not have ready access to a four-year institution, we provide a good location for that education. We are helping to increase educational opportunities for both Ohio and Indiana students.”

Richards said the potential to increase the student enrollment is significant with the agreement but IU East also has to recognize that students in Indiana can now attend Ohio institutions at in-state rates. “For us, it really represents working closely with the institutions in Ohio on the articulation agreements. We will make it easy and quick for students that begin their education in Ohio to continue their education here.”

The Ohio Option was developed over a two-year period, Young said. The option was in place for four years before the reciprocity agreement took effect this fall. Not only did the option help increase enrollment, it also provided the campus with quality students from Ohio that contributed their educational and service talents to IU East.

For Lari Jordan, the agreement provided a better opportunity financially to attend IU East. The New Paris, Ohio, resident is majoring in computer science.

“It has helped tremendously. I attend school full time and work part time. For me, the reciprocity agreement means not having to take out more college loans,” Jordan said.

Katie Daum, also of New Paris, wanted to finish her baccalaureate degree and chose to return to college as a student at IU East. She is now a senior completing her behavioral science degree with a concentration in psychology. IU East was a convenient choice for her because she lives just over the state line and works in Richmond.

Young said the institutions will have to continue working to make the transfer from a two-year college to a four-year program a seamless task for incoming students and the articulation agreements will still have to develop.

“We can’t rest with what we have done,” Young said.