Students squeezed as Illinois college costs rise, aid drops - Doug T. Graham, Daily Herald

Over the past 15 years, state aid for Illinois' public universities has declined 27.6 percent when adjusted for inflation, according to a recent report. Meanwhile, yearly tuition has continued to climb. At the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, tuition and fees for in-state undergraduates entering this fall starts at $15,338 a year, and some science, engineering and business programs are nearly $5,000 more. Fees, books and room and board push U of I's total cost to at least $29,674 a year. Ten years ago, students headed to the Urbana campus were looking at $7,180 in tuition and fees, so the costs have more than doubled since then. Other public universities across the state, while less expensive overall, have followed a similar trajectory. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130304/news/703049921/