During its regular meeting on Wednesday, March 18, at its Southeast Education Center in Pittsfield, the John Wood Community College Board of Trustees approved a $5 per credit hour increase following a three-year in-district tuition freeze. Effective Fall 2026, the in-district rate will move from $149 per credit hour to $154.
Full-time in-district students who take 15 credit hours will see an average increase of $75 per semester at the new rate.
“We do our best to keep tuition at its most affordable and freezing in-district tuition for the last three years was part of that effort,” JWCC Board Chair Bob Rhea shared. “It’s important for the College to be competitive in the market for tuition pricing as well as right sized investment into College functions. We believe this slight increase fits within a reasonable range; we continue to expand scholarship and financial aid offerings to support student costs. This continues to serve our mission of providing accessible educational opportunities and services at an exceptional value.”
Rhea shared that the College is also at the beginning of its budgeting process and Trustees expect a balanced budget to be presented in May.
“Balancing the budget means taking a hard look at everything and decreasing operational expenses as much as possible,” Rhea said. “Just as we are asking our students to invest more, we must find ways to be more efficient and have directed the College’s budget managers to do just that,” Rhea said. “It’s important the College is cognizant and proactive to balance the needs of students, taxpayers, and the institution.”
Trustees also welcomed JWCC’s new President, Dr. Aron Potter, to her first meeting.
“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Potter to her first meeting as JWCC’s eighth president and are impressed with her outreach in just two short weeks,” Rhea said. “She has met with representatives from nearly all stakeholder groups and attended a Guided Pathways Conference to be part of the national movement to help more rural students complete certificates and degrees in their home communities – I’d say she is off to a tremendous start.”
Potter’s first order of business was meeting with the Student Government Association and the College’s leadership team. She spent two full days going into offices and classrooms to meet staff, faculty, and students, attended a JWCC Foundation Board meeting, and has visited nearly all JWCC regional centers.
“As expected from this place I call home, I’ve been warmly welcomed by students, staff, faculty, Quincy’s mayor, Senator Tracy, Representative Moore, and members of district high schools, businesses and private foundations,” Potter said. “I look forward to making many more connections and re-connections in the coming weeks, especially with our K-12 district schools and workforce and university partners.”
In other business, the Board:
Approved a $323,023 completed bid from Peters Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc., for a replacement water chiller and pump for the Science and Technology Center on the Quincy campus.
Eliminated online, hybrid, open learning institutional support, and tech fees and replaced with one Technology and Student Support fee of $36 per credit hour. On average, the change will not increase costs for students overall and makes course delivery fees simpler and more equitable. The change is effective Fall 2026.
Accepted and filed the Federal Single Audit as required in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Compliance Supplement. Due to the delayed publication of the OMB Compliance Supplement that sets out the rules and procedures for this audit, the Federal Single Audit was split out from the financial statement audit accepted and filed at the November 2025 meeting.
The next meeting will be held Wednesday, April 15, at 6 p.m. at the JWCC Quincy campus.
