The Office of Business Affairs has proposed a designated tuition increase ranging from $0-$18 per credit hour for the 2007-2008 school year.
According to Mary Lee Hodge, vice president for business affairs, each year the business office must go through the protocol of balancing the university budget for the upcoming year.
The Office of Business Affairs estimates the “unavoidable cost” increases for next year, subtracts the projected revenue and the difference is the designated tuition. The range begins at $0 with revenue meeting the estimated costs up to $18, and tuition balancing the costs.
After the office calculates the range, the amount is sent to the chancellor’s office and the university requests permission to hold a public hearing.
Notes from the hearing are sent to the chancellor and a vote from the Board of Regents either approves or rejects the proposed range of increase. Once the state appropriates its monies, the Office of Business Affairs determines the increase.
Hodge said, “Dr. Wright is very concerned about costs for students. He doesn’t want it to go up. We don’t want costs to go up any more than they absolutely have to.”
Tuition increases can be avoided by a sufficient amount of allocation from the state or an enrollment increase. “If the cost is spread across more students, then it will be less,” Hodge said.
The “unavoidable costs” cover necessary system assessments, operating and maintenance costs, staffing increases for expanding departments, and upgrades such as faster Internet service for wireless users.
“We are definitely working on cost savings. We are very sensitive to the first generation college students and the fact that most of our students are on financial aid,” Hodge said.
Sophomore Jasmine Parker has career plans to assist in issues such as state mandated money and tuition increases. “I want to become a lobbyist for education reform because the Bush administration is decreasing money for education and increasing money for Pell grants but making it harder to qualify for these grants. That means less money is given to the state for state institutions and students are forced to pay more,” she said.