Trustees might raise tuition rates

Faced with budget problems, IU is likely to consider raising tuition higher than last year's increase, trustees said Tuesday.\nIncreased costs and a shortfall in state funding have already left the University short of money for maintenance and repairs. Trustees said raising tuition would be a viable option to solve the budget problem.\nPatrick Shoulders, vice president of the IU board of trustees, said it is "likely that there could be an incremental increase" in tuition beyond 4.9 percent, the increase from last year. Shoulders said the tuition increase would be in the range of hundreds of dollars, and would go toward maintenance and repair of University facilities at IU.\nIU received about $2.7 million for maintenance between 2001 and 2005 -- more than $77 million short of what was originally appropriated. Reports indicate that money was cut from maintenance and repairs because of slow growth in Indiana's economy.\nTrustee President Stephen Ferguson said the University simply needs more money to operate effectively. As for getting the money, Ferguson said, "I don't see an alternative other than raising tuition." He did not cite any specific increases.\nInterim IU-Bloomington Chancellor Ken Gros Louis said an additional maintenance fee is a possibility, as is taking a portion of scheduled tuition increases and setting it aside for maintenance. But he added there are worries the implementation of a student maintenance fee could lead to less assistance from the state.\nPurdue University will institute a repair fee of $250 per year starting for freshmen in the fall of 2006.\nOther trustees echoed the idea that an incremental increase is possible, but noted that it is too early to speculate about any specific increase because the budget is not compiled until the spring.\n"I think it's possible," said trustee Jeffrey Cohen. He added that "there are only so many sources of funding" for university education.\nIU has historically been one of the least expensive schools in the Big Ten. Tuition for the 2005-2006 school year is on the lower end of the spectrum, with IU ranking fourth cheapest for in-state students and third cheapest for out-of-state students in the Big Ten.\nIU had the second smallest tuition increase by percentage between the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 school years. Its 4.9-percent increase compares to Michigan's tuition increase of 12.3 percent last year and Michigan State's 12.6 percent rise. A recent College Board report said average tuition at public universities nationwide went up by 7.1 percent last year.\nSeveral trustees said keeping tuition low is a priority, noting that they want to maintain high academic standards without a substantial tuition increase.\n"You would like to attract people by having equipment that is current," trustee William Cast said. \nCast added that it costs a lot of money to get the latest equipment and attract top professors and lecturers to IU.\nTrustee Cora Smith Breckenridge said the last thing she wants to do is increase the cost of attending IU. "Whatever we have to do (to prevent tuition increases), I'm a supporter," she said. \nTrustee and student representative Casey Cox said the only valid reason he sees to raise tuition is to further IU's academic standing.\nGros Louis called the situation with state appropriations a "severe problem, especially on the Bloomington campus," and mentioned that many buildings in need of repair become more expensive to fix as time passes.