Student activity fee
Supporting Your Campus Experience
The Student Activity Fee is a fee created by students, for students. This mandatory fee helps fund initiatives and programs that support the student experience at PCC, like the Food Pantries, Identity-Based Resource Centers, Clubs, Student Government, and much more! All credit students pay this into it and the fee supports all sorts of activities that you have already paid for, meaning you’re able to use these services without paying any additional fees. It’s a vital component of the campus community and the primary mechanism for students to enact change at PCC to address the needs and desires of students.
As of July 2025, the SAF is $4.25 per credit hour. For example, students taking 12 credits in a term can expect to pay $51 towards the SAF.
Where Does the Money Go?
Here’s how your dollars make a difference:
- Student Leadership & Advocacy – Supports student government, clubs, civic engagement initiatives, and leadership programs that give students a voice in campus decision-making.
- Diversity & Inclusion – Funds campus resource centers, such as the Multicultural, Women’s, Veteran’s, and Queer Resource Centers, providing inclusive lounge spaces, programming, and support services.
- Food & Housing Assistance – Helps fund food pantries, emergency grants, and initiatives that support students facing basic needs insecurity.
- Campus Events & Activities – Provides funding for student-led events, cultural celebrations, and educational workshops that build community at PCC.
- Sustainability & Social Justice – Supports projects like the Eco Social Justice Grant, which funds student initiatives focused on sustainability and equity.
How has it Changed Over Time?
- 1993: A coalition of student leaders joined together to ask that the board impose a Student Activity Fee. The original Student Activity Fee was introduced Fall of 1994 with a $7/quarter fee for students taking 6 or more credits and $2/quarter for those taking five or less
- 1999: The fee structure altered to reflect $1/credit hour not to exceed $15 each quarter.
- 2004: The fee was increased to $1.25 per credit hour.
- 2007: The fee was increased to $1.50 per credit hour in order to establish a District Student Council, expansion of student leadership programs, implementation of diversity initiatives, and increased sustainability efforts.
- 2008: A $0.10 addition was approved by the Associated Students of PCC (ASPCC) District Student Council, creating The Green Initiative Fund, later renamed the Eco Social Justice Grant in 2018.
- 2013: The fee was increased to $1.70 per credit hour in order to offset projected declines in enrollment.
- 2015: The fee increased to $2.20 per credit hour. This provided funds for student-led programs in the Identity-Based Resource Centers, as well as funding for the Legislative Internship Program and offsets to rising salaries.
- 2017: The fee increased to $3.15 per credit hour. This helped offset Oregon’s minimum wage increases, provided more funding for basic needs services, expanded funding for the Identity-Based Resource Centers, and increased funding for student life programming.
- 2019: The fee was increased to $3.40 in order to offset wage increase requirements and declines in enrollment. Additionally, a portion of the increase was used to provide funding for the Dreamers’ Resource Center at Rock Creek Campus.
- 2025: The fee was increased to $4.25 per credit hour in order to catch up to inflation, offset declines in enrollment, and stabilize funding reserves. For more information, please refer to the 25-27 SAF Increase Proposal.
How Can I Get Involved?
Want to have a say in how student fees are spent? Here’s how you can get involved:
- ASPCC – The Associated Students of PCC (ASPCC) represents student voices and helps decide SAF funding priorities. Selection for ASPCC student leaders occurs in the Spring and Fall of each academic year. Public meetings are held every other Friday, and members of the public are able to provide public comment on agenda items; for more information follow us on PantherHub.
- Submit a Proposal – If you have a project or event that could benefit from SAF funding, consider submitting a Student Activity Fee Funding Proposal. (More details coming in Winter 2026)
- Participate in Events – Your SAF funds the programs you see around campus—so take advantage of leadership opportunities and on-campus events!
- Utilize Services – Access services like the Panther Pantry and Identity-Based Resource Centers, you’ve already paid for these services!
2025 Student Activity Fee Increase
The Student Activity Fee was last increased in 2018 from $3.15 to $3.40 ($0.25, 7.9%), and before that in 2017 from $2.20 to $3.15 ($0.95, 43.2%). An $0.85 (25%) increase to the Fee has been approved by the PCC Board of Directors, which will raise it to $4.25 for the 2025-27 Biennium. This increase will benefit PCC students by allowing Fee-funded programs to utilize their full budgets and maintain current service levels, as well as aligning the Fee with purchasing power equivalent to 2018, when the Fee was last increased.
FY25-27 Student Activity Fee Increase Proposal
Presented by Joshua Hutchinson, ASPCC President
Overview
The Student Activity Fee is a mandatory student-initiated fee (ORS 341.470) that is collected by the Board and allocated by the ASPCC with institutional support. The Fee funds student-facing services and programs.
Key points:
- The Student Activity Fee was last increased in 2018 from $3.15 to $3.40 ($0.25, 7.9%),
and before that in 2017 from $2.20 to $3.15 ($0.95, 43.2%). - We are proposing an $0.85 (25%) increase to the Fee, which will raise it to $4.25 for the 2025-27 Biennium.
- This increase will benefit PCC students by allowing Fee-funded programs to utilize their full budgets and maintain current service levels, as well as aligning the Fee with purchasing power equivalent to 2018, when the Fee was last increased.
Student activity fees per credit hour at Oregon community colleges
- Clatsop: less than $3
- Chemeketa: less than $3
- Central Oregon: less than $3
- Klamath: $3
- PCC: $3:40, increasing to $4.25
- Mt. Hood: $4.25
- Lane: $4.51
- Linn Benton: $4.61
- Columbia Gorge: $5
- Oregon Coast: $5.50
- Treasure Valley: $6
- Blue Mountain: $11.50
- Clackamas: $13
- Umpqua: $21.50
Number of campuses per college
- Klamath: 1
- Oregon Coast: 1
- Treasure Valley: 1
- Umpqua: 1
- Clackamas: 2
- Chemeketa: 2
- Clatsop: 2
- Columbia Gorge: 2
- Lane: 3
- Linn Benton: 3
- Mt. Hood: 3
- Blue Mountain: 4
- Central Oregon: 4
- PCC: 4
How will this affect costs?
Cost per term
- 12 Credits: $40.80 to $51 (increase of $10.20)
- 16 Credits: $54.40 to $68 (increase of $13.60)
Cost per year
- 12 Credits: $122.40 to $153 (increase of $30.60)
- 16 Credits: $163.20 to $204 (increase of $40.80)
Total
- FY24: $1,957,339
- FY25: $2,495,607