ATLANTA — Students at Georgia's public colleges and universities will see tuition increases this fall, after university system officials Tuesday backed increases including a 9 percent per semester boost at Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia.

    The majority of state-operated schools, including Georgia Southern University, will see a 2.5 percent increase for the fourth year in a row. Statewide, the Board of Regents of University System of Georgia has approved tuition increases each year since at least 2002.

    Every in-state, full-time undergraduate student at Georgia Southern will pay at least $50 more per semester next year. This is based on the university’s tuition rate for this year of $2,039 for a student taking 12 semester hours, the minimum to be considered full-time. For a student taking a full load of 15 semester hours of classes, the increase will be about $64.

    While this is a 2.5 percent increase, the national average for tuition increases is about 3 percent, Georgia Southern University spokesperson Jan Bond noted.

   A statement she supplied on behalf of the university referred to “a delicate balance between ensuring our students have access to a world-class education …while keeping the investment in their education as affordable as possible” and expressed thanks to the Board of Regents for its insight and support.

   “We will remain sensitive to increases in costs while being steadfast in our commitment to produce knowledgeable, well-rounded critical thinkers with strong work ethic and desire for success,” Bond said.

   The university’s full statement can be found with the online version of this story at www.statesboroherald.com.

   Georgia Southern’s tuition hike will be a fraction of those at some of the state’s universities.

    Students at the research universities again will see the highest increases — costing in-state students $405 more at Georgia Tech for a total of $4,906 and $387 more at the University of Georgia for a total of $4,682 each semester.

    Georgia State University tuition will rise to $4,279 per semester. That's a 5.5 percent increase, identical to the rate approved for Georgia Regents University, with varying costs depending on when a student began courses.

    This year, the system also proposed increases beyond the standard 2.5 percent for recently consolidated schools and those with growing enrollment or changing classifications. Kennesaw State University students will see a 4.4 percent increase, compensating for a merger with Southern Polytechnic State University completed earlier this year, while Middle Georgia State College will increase tuition 9 percent as it becomes a university. In 2014, students at those schools experienced only a 2.5 percent increase.

    Chancellor Hank Huckaby said the tuition increases are necessary to maintain overall quality at each college or university.

    "To ensure we can continue to offer quality public higher education, we must continue to invest in our institutions," Huckaby said. "We have carefully assessed the tuition rates for our institutions to make sure we are balancing the increasing costs of providing public higher education while keeping tuition and fees as affordable as possible."

    Georgia this year included 3 percent increases to the merit-based HOPE Scholarship program in the state's budget for fiscal year 2016, beginning July 1.

Statesboro Herald staff writer Al Hackle adapted this Associated Press story by adding information obtained from Georgia  Southern University and its  website.