College students majoring in debt - James Salzer and Laura Diamond, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Although most of them don’t know what it’s for, Georgia’s college students are paying a “special institutional fee” that can exceed $1,000 a year. The fee was supposed to end this summer, but University System Chancellor Hank Huckaby told the AJC last week that it will continue next year and probably beyond. The reason: It brings in $210 million a year. The story of the special institutional fee is the continuing story of the University System of Georgia: The economy may be in a downturn, but the state’s colleges are on an upswing, and students are paying for much of it. Spending has gone from $5.4 billion in 2007 to a projected $7 billion this year, and is expected to continue to climb next year. Tuition and fees at many schools have doubled since the fall of 2005, hitting close to $10,000 a year at the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech.