97-06-06 Trustees: Tuition & Fees Report

TRUSTEES HEAR FIRST REPORT ON NEXT YEAR’S TUITION

     COLUMBUS -- The Ohio State University Board of Trustees on
Friday (6/6) heard a first reading of a plan that will increase
resident undergraduate tuition by 5.5 percent, or $192 a year. A
formal vote on tuition will be taken in July, after the Ohio
General Assembly adopts a state budget for higher education.

     A House and Senate conference committee is examining tuition
caps as part of the budget process.

     “Our proposed fee increase without a tuition cap still will
be less than it was in 1996, when there was a 6 percent cap,”
said William J. Shkurti, vice president for finance.

     The overall cost for resident undergraduates to attend
school full-time and live in university housing will increase
$409 a year, or 4.3 percent, he said. This includes a 3.6 percent
increase for room and board ($168), 5 percent for textbooks and
supplies ($32), 1.6 percent for health insurance ($9), 3.8
percent for parking and bus permits ($3) and 7.7 percent for
football tickets ($5). The general fee will increase from $82 to
$91, primarily because of inflation.

     The 5.5 percent tuition increase comes from a 3 percent
inflationary increase, 1 percent increase in student financial
aid and 1 percent increase to cover the student share of unfunded
mandates and improved course offerings, Shkurti said. It also
includes 0.5 percent set-aside for direct service improvements in
consultation with students. This is the third year a portion of
the tuition increase has been set aside for student services,
Shkurti said. This year, the increase will produce about
$500,000.

     Other graduate and professional fees and the out-of-state
surcharge will increase by 5 percent, except in the colleges of
law (9.5 percent), medicine (8 percent), dentistry (6 percent)
and optometry (8 percent) and in the business MBA program (9
percent). The programs requested fee hikes in excess of the 5
percent to improve services to students. The colleges presented
rationales for the additional increases and consulted with the
students in their programs.

     Tuition for regional campuses will not be recommended until
next month, after the General Assembly sets its budget for the
new fiscal year. But full funding of the access challenge in the
state budget would allow the regional campuses to hold increases
to 2.4 percent.

     Undergraduate fees at Ohio State are 7.1 percent below the
average for its peer institutions, while state support per full-
time equivalent student is 14 percent less than its peers. The
university ranks ninth in tuition among the 13 Ohio public-
assisted universities, Shkurti said.

     “That makes Ohio State an excellent value for Ohio
taxpayers,” Shkurti said, “but it also means the university
doesn’t have the resources to match our competition in critical
areas such as support services outside the classroom. The
increased funds provided by increased tuition and state support
will permit us to improve these important services to our
students and the people of Ohio.”

                             #

Contact:     William J. Shkurti, vice president for finance,
          (614) 292-9232

Written by David Bhaerman, University Communications,
          (614) 292-8422


[Submitted by: Von Vargas  (vargas.12@osu.edu)
               
Fri, 6 Jun 1997 15:56:08 -0400 (EDT)]
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