Student prices to rise at Pitt's Greensburg, Johnstown branch campuses

Student fees are going up this fall on University of Pittsburgh branch campuses at Johnstown and Greensburg.

A trustees panel voted Wednesday to raise the student activity fee for full-time Pitt-Johnstown students from $180 a year to $400. The panel also approved increasing the athletic and recreation fee at Pitt-Greensburg from $210 a year to $250.

The student affairs subcommittee of Pitt’s board of trustees approved the changes. There was no discussion before either vote.

At Pitt-Johnstown, those enrolled part-time previously were not charged a student activity fee, according to the university’s website. Wednesday’s resolution extends a $100 annual fee to those students starting this fall.

Kenyon Bonner, vice provost and dean of students, said the increase for full-time students at Pitt-Johnstown was needed because “the cost to student organizations to operate and thrive has risen significantly ” and “current student organizations are unable to be fully funded and there are no resources to fund new student organizations.”

He said the fee was last raised in 2016.

As for the athletic and recreation fee at Pitt-Greensburg in Hempfield, the resolution approved Wednesday said that “cost increases have rendered the current student athletic fee inadequate to fund current operations and increased travel costs, including the addition of one new varsity sport, women’s bowling.”

The resolution said the student government association recommended the action. Officials said the fee also supports recreation and intramural programming and has not been raised since 2018.

About 4,500 students attend Pitt’s four branch locations, which also include campuses at Bradford and Titusville. All of the branches campuses have been facing enrollment declines in recent years.

Pitt is not expected to set its 2023-2024 tuition rate for all of its campuses until next month.

The base in-state tuition rate on Pitt’s main campus is $19,760. Yearly base tuition at the Bradford, Greensburg and Johnstown campuses is $13,660 and tuition is $16,824 to study nursing at Titusville.