DALTON, Ga. — The members of the Dalton Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday night to raise tuition for out-of-district Georgia students by $50 but left tuition rates the same for out-of-state residents and out-of-district children of school system employees.

Noting, as Chairman Rick Fromm said, that out-of-district students bring “an intrinsic value to our school district,” board members did not stray far from the previous tuition rates. In earlier meetings discussing the tuition policy, board members had reviewed a possible increase of $50 to $150 for non-employee out-of-district students.

The increase in tuition will provide an additional $11,000 in revenue for the school system’s budget, which for the 2018-19 school year has roughly $80 million in revenue and expenditures.

The vote raises tuition for out-of-district in-state students to $1,600 for the 2019-20 school year. That rate was previously $1,550. The rate for out-of-district in-state children of employees remains $550, and the rate for out-of-state children of employees remains $1,000. Tuition for out-of-state students stays at $5,000.

Board member Matt Evans said he would like to continue studying ways to reduce tuition through incentives for volunteering, mentoring, tutoring or serving in a Parent Teacher Organization before the board revisits tuition rates next year.

“There may be other ways to think about how we can encourage what tuition families bring to our district,” Evans said. “They add value across the population at schools and social activities. I would suggest any out-of-the-box thinking that can help with intangible and non-monetary value that comes into our schools through tuition families.”

Superintendent Tim Scott, who previously worked in several school districts in Georgia, said the trend around the state has been for city districts to lose students to districts around them. He said Dalton is the opposite and is still attracting students.

According to information provided by the school system, non-resident students comprise roughly 5 percent of the district’s enrollment. Of those 450 students in the current school year, approximately 40 percent are children of school system employees.

Staff Writer Shaka Cobb contributed to this report.