Another Tuition Hike proposed today

cybermom
Fri, 25 Jan 2008 08:20:56 +0000

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Orlando Sentinel

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State University System board proposes 8% tuition hike to halt downward financial spiral

Luis Zaragoza

Sentinel Staff Writer

January 25, 2008

Florida’s public-university students could face an 8 percent tuition increase this fall if the state’s Board of Governors gets its way.

State legislators wasted no time denouncing the board’s decision Thursday, saying it threatens the financial health of two tuition-payment programs and questioning the board’s authority to set tuition.

“People are concerned about keeping their jobs. They’re concerned about being able to pay for their housing,” said state Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach, chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Higher Education Appropriations. “At a time when we want students to go to college more than ever before, I don’t think now is the time to raise tuition.”

But members of the State University System’s governing board seemed determined Thursday to take drastic steps to free Florida’s universities from what they see as a downward financial spiral caused in part by artificially low tuition rates.

The board at one point toyed with the idea of raising tuition by 13percent each year for the next five years. But members backed off and settled on the 8percent increase this fall, which will cost the average university student about $200 per year. Last year’s tuition increase was 5percent, which has been fairly typical.

Board members didn’t stop with tuition, however, declaring they will respond to future budget cuts with layoffs and enrollment caps rather than continue trying to stretch dwindling dollars. A board spokesman, Bill Edmonds, said that could lead to the first enrollment drop in memory.

“We have to do the right thing, but that’s not always the easiest thing to do,” said Carolyn Roberts, the board’s chairwoman.

Prepaid plan would suffer
Thursday’s meeting illustrated the mounting tension between the board and the Legislature. A lawsuit filed last year by a group that included former Gov. Bob Graham maintained the state constitution gives that authority to the board. A judge dismissed the lawsuit, but backers expect to refile.

“They seem to be jumping the gun on the court case,” Lynn said. “It’s the Legislature’s responsibility to raise tuition, or lower it.”

Senate President Ken Pruitt decried the effect a tuition increase will have on the popular Florida Prepaid College Tuition Program, which allows people to buy a contract that locks in tuition rates. The more rates increase, the more it costs the prepaid program.

“It’s frightening to think that the Board of Governors would seriously consider a proposal that would, in effect, destroy the … program,” Pruitt said.

A one-time, 8percent increase isn’t enough to break the bank, said Tom Wallace, executive director of the Florida Prepaid College Board.

“As long as, on average, it [the tuition increase] is 6.5percent, we can withstand it,” Wallace said, adding that the board’s idea of annual increase of 13percent “would have basically turned us upside down.”

He said the state guarantees the program’s contracts, so customers have nothing to worry about.

Across-the-board tuition increases also would make the state’s popular Bright Futures college-scholarship program more expensive to fund, but board members said that’s the Legislature’s problem.

The state, by law, must cover tuition increases for students who win Bright Futures scholarships, which pay up to 100percent of tuition and fees for students whose grades or test scores are good enough.

More than $347million was disbursed in Bright Futures awards in the 2006-07 school year.

UCF has reserves
Though the idea of double-digit increases was briefly alluring, some board members noted even that wasn’t enough to push Florida’s lowest-in-the-nation tuition into the nation’s upper tier.

If the 8percent increase comes to pass, it would raise $32million during the 2008-09 budget year. Undergraduates would pay about $93 more a semester on top of tuition and fees that average about $3,361.

Meanwhile, the universities are bracing for a possible second round of budget cuts in the 2007-08 school year because of falling state revenues. Board members said the Legislature could make that call in March.

Individual universities will decide how to cut costs, but the board directed schools to consider layoffs and enrollment caps.

The board already has imposed hiring freezes and freshman-class enrollment caps at the state’s 11 universities in reaction to state reductions last fall. Some schools also cut library hours and travel budgets.

At Florida State University, the school’s board of trustees recently approved a plan to lay off nearly 200 employees, including faculty and staff, in anticipation of upcoming cuts.

The University of Central Florida, which would face $10.4million in cuts this spring, made deeper cuts than required during the fall and wound up with about $8million in reserve, which could soften the blow for future cuts, Provost Terry Hickey said.

UCF hasn’t considered immediate staff reductions like FSU, but layoffs might be an option, he said.

Layoff worries
At UCF on Thursday, several faculty members said they’re worried.

Dr. Ron Eaglin, chairman of UCF’s engineering-technology department, said he has eliminated some adjunct instructors and graduate assistants and restricted travel. With more cuts expected, things can only get worse.

“At some point,” he said, “I’m just not going to be able to offer a specific course… At some point, you’re cutting bone.”

Several professors interviewed for this article described larger class sizes, less interaction with students and low morale. Some said they watched talented colleagues leave for better opportunities. Others described departments buzzing with talk of possible layoffs.

“We talk about cuts,” said Dr. Elisabet Rutstrom, an economics professor, “but there’s really not much that we can do. Right now, I’m focusing on teaching and what my students need.”

Students are worried, too.

Gabrielle Petri, an 18-year-old biology student, gasped when she heard about the proposed hikes.

“It doesn’t sound fair at all,” Petri said.

She said a higher tuition bill would hurt her family’s bottom line.

“My parents saved over the years to pay for my education,” she said. “But this is still a lot.”

Tanya Caldwell and Claudia Zequeira of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Luis Zaragoza can be reached at lzaragoza@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5718.

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