Student body president candidates debate tuition hikes

Although out-of-state students comprise a minority at UNC, student body president candidates are considering their concerns about tuition hikes.

At the student body president debate hosted by the Out-Of-State Student Association Thursday night, questions centered on the needs of students outside of North Carolina.

The association endorsed Christy Lambden for the position.

Tracy Blauweiss, co-president of the association, said it endorsed Lambden for his connection to out-of-state students’ issues and his views on campus safety.

Candidates Hetali Lodaya, Christy Lambden, Rob Jones and Will Lindsey attended the debate to discuss their backgrounds and platforms in front of an audience of about 40 people.

Candidate Kevin Claybren did not attend the event.

Besides increasing out-of-state tuition costs, the forum also focused on how the candidates would address the cap on how many out-of-state and international students can attend the University.

Lodaya said that she can’t promise that tuition won’t increase, but that she will work to minimize increases for out-of-state students by including them in the discussion and getting their feedback.

“By educating you and involving you in the process, we can all understand the process we go through as a university when we talk about tuition increases,” she said.

She said she would support increasing the cap on out-of-state and international students who can be admitted to the University.

Jones said he would also try to keep education affordable for all students and increase the cap to maintain UNC’s worldwide reputation.

“The student body president needs to make sure to fight for in-state, out-of-state and international students,” he said.

“We need to be going to Raleigh, and not just have me talking, but telling your stories too,” he said.

Lindsey said he would advocate for lower tuition for all students and support increasing the cap.

“It is absolutely feasible, and it’s a good revenue model and good for diversity to increase the cap,” he said.

But he said it would be more than a campus issue since the cap is mandated by the state legislature.

Lambden said he would support increasing the cap because he is an international student.

He said increasing the cap would also help subsidize in-state and out-of-state tuition.

“Increasing the cap will help improve diversity,” he said. “As an out-of-state student, I’m grateful we have more out-of-state and international students here because it provides a more diverse experience.”

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