An increase in tuition is coming to schools in the Alabama Community College System – including Lurleen B. Wallace Community College.

The ACCS board of trustees recently approved the increase.

Tuition will increase $2 per credit hour for the 2016-2017 school year.

Beginning in the fall, tuition will be $117 per hour for Alabama residents and $232 for nonresidents.

Officials expect the increase to produce about $3,975,000 in additional revenue to share among the state’s 29 community college campuses.

“Tuition at Alabama’s two-year colleges still represents the best value in higher education in the state,” LBWCC President Dr. Herb Riedel said. “It is approximately half of university tuition, while our courses transfer seamlessly to a senior institution.”

Riedel said in most cases, students can attend college locally for two years while living at home and avoiding the additional living expenses of attending a university in another city.

“The majority of our students receive tuition assistance through either federal financial aid, institutional scholarships, or private scholarships form our two college foundations,” he said.

ACCS Chancellor Mark Heinrich said the system is making changes to hopefully eliminate the need for future tuition increases.

“I don’t like the fact that we have to increase tuition,” he said.