BOG to Act on $486 In-State Tuition Hike

Under the proposal, tuition for out-of-state undergraduates would increase by $1,778.

In a late-night session Tuesday that lasted more than two hours, the BOG Budget and Finance Committee waded through about a dozen tuition proposals before reaching an agreement on one plan.

The plan calls for a systemwide increase for in-state students of 8 percent, a total of $186 at UNC-CH. For out-of-state students, the committee supported a 12 percent increase, a total of about $1,478 at UNC-CH.

The across-the-board increase was prompted by the UNC system's need for $80 million to fund enrollment growth and need-based financial aid. Previously, board members had hoped to secure the full amount from the N.C. General Assembly, but as the state's fiscal situation continued to dim, that goal became less and less likely.

The systemwide tuition increase will generate about $40 million, and BOG members said they hoped that the legislature would at least match that amount.

"For me, and I believe for this board, the number one priority has to be enrollment," said BOG member Jim Phillips at the start of the committee meeting. "The General Assembly will not fund enrollment growth this year -- certainly not all of it."

But in a tuition workshop prior to the meeting, BOG member Ray Farris said he objected to using tuition to fund enrollment, arguing that it would set a bad precedent.

"For 71 years this board has refrained from funding enrollment; it is the General Assembly's responsibility," Farris said. "We do it this one time, and it will come back to haunt us.

"We are charged with administrating the university; the General Assembly funds the university. This is their problem, not ours -- we are not a revenue-raising body."

But Farris seemed to be one of the few voices of dissent, as most board members agreed that dire circumstances called for the UNC system to consider funding enrollment growth this one time to keep the system accessible to all North Carolinians.

Last month, Gov. Mike Easley announced that the state was facing a $900 million budget shortfall for the fiscal year. The deficit is expected to grow to more than a billion dollars for the next fiscal year.

"I can't remember a time in my lifetime that it has been this bad," said BOG member and former N.C. Gov. Jim Holshouser. "I think it is important for us to say that this is not a precedent, this is not a first time.

"There are new students coming this fall unless we slam the door in their face, and they will pay tuition too, and we should not forget that."

The Budget and Finance Committee also approved tuition increase requests for most of the other 15 UNC-system schools, although some were at a lower amount than what the individual campuses recommended.

On Jan. 24 the UNC-CH Board of Trustees approved a one-year, $400 tuition increase for all students. The committee officially decided Tuesday to knock that amount down to $300.

The committee approved the change unanimously, except for BOG Chairman Ben Ruffin, who wanted a lower campus-initiated tuition increase.

The campus-initiated tuition increase will go toward increases in faculty salaries, need-based financial aid, reducing the student-faculty ratio and raising stipends for graduate students.

Several board members said they were uncomfortable with a $400 campus-initiated increase because they feared it was too large of a hike.

UNC-CH Chancellor James Moeser has repeatedly stated that he is opposed to a large systemwide increase and a decrease in campus-initiated requests.

But BOG members at the meeting Tuesday appeared to be at a near consensus that there were few other options for the University to remain accessible.

"We're doing this as a one-time stopgap measure," said BOG Budget and Finance Committee Chairman Addison Bell.

"I hope that we will never have to do it again."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.