With national outcry about the affordability of a college education, Iona has been trying to keep tuition increases under control.

Although price raises have been kept to the bare minimum, tuition and room and board costs $49,304 for one year at Iona.

Iona is a private institution and will typically cost more than a state school. If a student has no federal aid or scholarships, that student will spend more than $200,000 on college.

Anne Marie Schettini-Lynch, senior vice president for finance and administration, knows that affordability has been a hot topic and that Iona has been working on it.

“We look at the tuition and board rates first and really look at affordability,” she said.

Each year, a committee on budgets convenes and assesses the tuition and room and board rates. The committee, made up of faculty, staff and students, discusses how to keep Iona running at its best, while keeping increases in tuition low, and without slashing any budgets.

But tuition and room and board prices have been going up every single year. For the 2012-2013 school year, tuition, room and board and fees totaled $44,328. But for the 2015-2016 year, totals max out at $49,304. That’s an increase of almost $5,000.

That price increase may sound scary, but according to Schettini-Lynch, the committee looks to lower the percentage of increase each year.

“Each year, the goal has been to be less than the year before,” she said.

The percentage in change of increase has been small, but from year to year, the change is lowered by .1 percent. Room and board rates have also seen a change in percentage from year to year.

From the 2012-2013 to the 2013-2014 school year, the rates increased 3.8 percent. But each year since, rates have only been raised 3 percent.

Although the total rate for one year at Iona seems expensive, the College does everything it can to supply students with scholarship and aid.

Every year tuition, room and board and fees go up, more money is added to the scholarship and aid funds, making an education at Iona increasingly more affordable.

“We try to work with the students and help them be successful here,” Schettini-Lynch said. “Everyone is concerned about the costs, so we will focus on it.”

Schettini-Lynch suggests that any students who may find themselves in need of more scholarship or aid speak to student financial services.

She also advises students to speak to the SGA.

“They are your advocates on that budget committee,” Schettini-Lynch said. “They express feelings on that.”