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University of Idaho President M. Duane Nellis is proposing a 6.1 percent increase in resident undergraduate fees per academic year to go into effect in the 2012-2013 academic year.
The proposed additional $356 would bring the annual cost of attendance for full-time in-state students from $5,856 to $6,212.
Doug Baker, UI provost and executive vice president, said the increase would satisfy a pent-up need in the institution due to a budget reduction of about $30 million during the last four years.
Executive Director of Planning and Budget Keith Ickes said there are three key parts to Nellis’ request — salary increases for faculty and staff, support for the library and new faculty.
Ickes said the state would fund 60 percent of salary increases, and the remaining 40 percent would be funded by tuition and fees.
The UI Library has suffered, Ickes said, from recent budget cuts.
“We need to get that back,” he said. “We need to find a way to put the library back on solid footing.”
Baker said the increase would go toward expanding the library’s collection as well as inflation on books and subscriptions totaling about $350,000 a year.
Ickes said the third factor he will discuss with student leadership is the opportunity to move forward.
“By move forward, we mean things like … almost every college needs new faculty — new ideas, new energy — just the whole excitement that comes when you get new people on board,” he said.
As UI enrollment grows, Baker said new faculty is crucial to stronger teaching and learning for students.
The proposed increase for FY2013 is 2.3 percent less than last year’s, and will provide approximately $3.7 million in additional revenue.
Last year students were being asked to fill a hole the state left when it cut $3 million out of the university’s budget.
“It’s easy,” he said. “People sort of understand that if you have a problem, you have to solve the problem, but you don’t feel good about it at the end of the day. …This time we’re talking about doing something that actually starts to move us forward.”
Baker said the increase would help the university start down a path of rebuilding.
As part of his overall proposal, Nellis honored ASUI President Samantha Perez’s request for a zero percent increase to the dedicated student activity fee.
Ickes said in most institutions outside of Idaho, tuition and fees are separate. In Idaho, the State Board of Education bundles the two — every dollar the student activity fee is increased by is one less dollar toward tuition.
“So when the students worked through their process and came up with a zero percent increase (to the student activity fee), that’s just enormous for the university,” Ickes said. “That means anything we’re able to raise can then go right into tuition and into funding all of the general education.”
The proposal also includes a 15 percent, or $124, increase to the graduate/professional fee, as well as a 7 percent, or $516, increase to the professional law fee.
Nellis is proposing a $268, or 2.1 percent, increase to non-resident tuition from $12,520 to $12,788 per academic year. Out-of-state students pay this amount in addition to the fees Idaho residents pay to attend UI.
Students will have the opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions about the proposal in an open forum and budget presentation at 3:30 p.m. Thursday in the Commons Clearwater Room.
The UI Board of Regents will take action on the proposal at its meeting April 18 and 19 on campus.
Baker said Nellis’ request is a modest increase that allows UI to continue to be valuable in the market.
“I’m cautiously optimistic,” Baker said. “If we can get this and our enrollments in place, we’ll be turning the corner.”
Britt Kiser can be reached at [email protected]