NEWS | October 15, 2003

Tuition and Fees
Loan program change passes
Tuition Review Committee members may take it into consideration, official says.

By Brad Rollins
The Shorthorn managing editor

Administrators say they won’t adjust their proposed tuition hikes in view of legislation passed Monday that effectively allows the university to keep more of the money that would be raised through expected tuition increases.

Instead, the change will be among factors the Tuition Review Committee may want to consider as it hashes out a recommendation for 2004 tuition rates, interim Provost Dana Dunn said. The committee meets Thursday to begin deliberations.

“At this point, since this comes so late in the process, we probably won’t make changes to our proposal,” Dr. Dunn said. “But I fully expect this will be taken into consideration — among other things — when the committee is deciding what they want to do.”

The proposal Dunn advocates provides for a $15-per-credit-hour hike for the spring and an additional $20-per-credit-hour increase for the fall in most courses. Upper- and graduate-level engineering and nursing courses would experience added increases.

Administrators had said they would probably shave 75 cents per semester credit hour from their proposed hikes for spring and a dollar from their suggestion for fall if the Legislature took action on the measure.

The legislation, which passed this week as an amendment to a House finance bill, modified the funding source for the B-On-Time loan program. The program reimburses students for college loans if they maintain a 3.0 grade point average and graduate within four years. The law requires five cents of every dollar raised from increased tuition be reserved for the loans.

Passed after the original B-On-Time bill in the spring session, tuition deregulation legislation mandated an additional 20 cents per dollar increase will be set aside for other need-based financial aid. The current bill makes the 5 percent part of — not an addition to — the 20 percent already set aside. Consequently, universities would be able to keep 5 percent more of revenue gained by tuition increases.

The 20 percent financial aid requirement has drawn criticism from some members of the review committee. Member Bryan Shaner said he will push to fund the university’s needs by student fees not subject to the mandatory amount set aside.

Speaking after changes to the bill on Monday, Shaner said the move did not alter his position.

“It’s better — 20 percent instead of 25 percent,” he said. “But students who pay for their own college will still have to pay child support for their peers.”

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