In what appears to be a state budget crisis casualty, tuition at the Pennsylvania College of Technology is rising 4.79 percent for in-state students in the coming 2009-10 school year. The tuition hike is well above the rate of inflation and regular readers in this space know that's a consistent plea to colleges – keep the tuition hikes, if they must be, in step with inflation. Full-time, in-state students taking an average of 15 credits a semester at the college will pay about $12,480 in tuition and fees – an increase of $690 from last year. We think we understand where this is coming from. The school's budget, up less than 1 percent, includes a 6-percent decrease in the college's state appropriation, based on the governor's current budget proposal. That's $786,000 that was hard to make up. Given that the actual college budget barely increased and the college has an obligation to maintain its excellent instruction offerings, we get the tuition increase.