As the costs to attend college spiral upward across the South, leaders of local higher education institutions say they are doing their part to keep tuition at manageable levels.

The Southern Regional Education Board on Tuesday unveiled results from its 2009 Fact Book on Higher Education, showing that 2008 tuition and required fees at a public, four-year institutions in the 16-state SREB region rose 74 percent since 1998. South Carolina colleges and universities, which saw an 82 percent increase during that period, had the highest average tuition in the region at $7,700 -- or $2,000 above the national average.

"SREB states face a major challenge in helping more students finish college degrees," SREB President Dave Spence said in a statement. "Only slightly more than half of freshmen in four-year colleges finish a bachelor's degree within six years, and this needs to change. College is less affordable for most families, and we must help more students complete degrees if our states are to continue to prosper and grow."

Locally, however, five of the seven area colleges and universities raised tuition by 3.6 percent or less for the 2009-10 academic year, which is below the national inflation rate.