In his first move as University of Idaho President, Chuck Staben has announced the university will ask the Idaho State Board of Education for a 4.7 percent increase in undergraduate tuition and fees.
The proposed increase would raise in-state and out-of-state undergraduate tuition and fees by $308 and $714 respectively — for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Keith Ickes, executive director for planning and budget, said the SBOE will vote on the increase at the April board meeting in Moscow. He said the SBOE can approve the proposed increase or a lower percentage if they choose.
Ickes said SBOE policy prevents UI from raising the percentage after the official proposal is announced, meaning the university now cannot ask for more than a 4.7 percent increase.
“We can go lower, but we can’t go higher, so that sort of sets the upper bound on our tuition,” Ickes said.
Max Cowan, ASUI president, said although it is unfortunate to see tuition rise again, it is a positive sign that the proposed increase is less than 5 percent. This is in contrast to the previous two years, which each saw more than a 5 percent increase in UI tuition and fees.
“Over the past 10 years (tuition) almost doubled, and that’s an unfortunate reality of higher education across the nation,” Cowan said. “I’m excited to see the increase be under 5 percent, which we haven’t seen for several years now.”
Ickes said the increase is determined by analyzing how much money is needed to fund important budget items. He said UI increases tuition fees, as opposed to facilities or student fees, because it allows the university to be more flexible in how it distributes funds.
“We’re fundamentally looking at things that we think are absolutely critical, essential or mandatory to accomplish,” Ickes said.
He said the tuition increase will also fund administrative salary raises and faculty promotions.
Ickes said during the university’s recent classification and compensation study, it was discovered UI is paying faculty and staff at 85 percent the current market share for their position. He said the state does not often fund salary increases, but usually allocates money to fix a specific problem or issue on campus.
“It’s important for us to stay competitive on salaries, right now we need some catch up,” Ickes said. “The state does not put money into salaries, and when they do it is a fraction of what we need.”
Ickes said many UI faculty who will receive promotions and complete their tenure track throughout next school year deserve a salary increase.
“We have assistant professors who have been hard at work for six, seven years, they are up for tenure and promotion,” Ickes said. “When they get promoted, they get a salary increase.”
Ickes said the increase in tuition will also fund annual budget expenses such as campus utilities and library periodicals. He said maintaining UI’s periodical literature costs approximately $300,000 to $350,000 per year.
Ickes said the increase will also fund two new counseling positions that will be focused on deterring violence and alcohol abuse. He said the additional positions
are a result of recommendations made by a UI task forces on drugs and alcohol.
Ickes said Staben has met with student representatives for several weeks to gather input on the tuition increase, including ASUI, the Student Bar Association and the Graduate and Professional Student Association. Even though Staben had not officially assumed his position, Ickes said he was heavily involved in the decision making process.
In the meetings, Cowan said he emphasized that students are taking out more debt to afford college, and any increase to tuition should be done with careful thought and consideration. He said he stressed that UI students are willing to pay more for tuition, if the extra funds maintain the quality of their educational experience.
Cowan said changes in administrative compensation, and other mandatory expenses, are long overdue and will insure that students continue to receive a quality education.
Ickes said in years past, the UI president, ASUI president and himself have traveled to meet with SBOE members to explain the issues and reasoning for the proposed increase. He said this process is beneficial to SBOE members, because it allows them to ask questions and clear up preconceived notions about the proposed increase.
“We have done a lot of groundwork to sit down and explain that this is not just a simple request,” Ickes said.
Cowan said he will travel to meet with SBOE members this year to explain his role in the process, and provide student opinion on the increase.
Ryan Tarinelli can be reached at [email protected]