Tuition rises five percent

President Thomas Jackson announced a tuition increase of $1,350 for the 2004-05 academic year Tuesday, bringing the total cost of attending UR close to $38,000. At $28,250, this is a five percent increase in tuition from last year.For students using the most popular meal plan – the 170 Club Plan – the total term bill will increase by 4.6 percent.”This year’s five percent increase in tuition is the result of a collective judgment call by The College, University Administration and the trustees as to what would be an appropriate increase given general economic climate, programmatic needs and budgetary conditions,” Vice President for Administration and Finance and Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Ronald Paprocki said. “Not only are [colleges and universities], including UR, subject to cost increases for energy, health benefits, etc., but there is a great deal of emphasis on maintaining and improving the quality of programs,” Paprocki said. “In order to accomplish that, institutions have to renew and upgrade technology more frequently, upgrade facilities, modify programs and develop new ones and recruit and retain top-notch faculty and staff members.”Continuing, Paprocki said, “This quality imperative is an extremely important factor. Even with a tuition increase, the price of a Rochester education is below that of many of our peer institutions.”While New York University, currently tied at 35 in the rankings with UR according to the U.S. News and World Report, has not announced their tuition increase yet, it is expected to be less than $33,427 for next year. Lehigh University, tied for 37 in the rankings, will have a tuition of $29,140. Brandeis University, tied at 32, will require a full-time tuition of $30,159.While this year’s tuition increase is lower than last year’s national average increase of six percent according to the College Board’s Trends in College Pricing 2003 report, this year’s UR tuition is about $9,000 higher than last year’s national average of four-year private colleges.UR’s tuition is less than $200 away from doubling the $14,210 it was in 1990.”We are always concerned about affordability,” Paprocki said. “Among the challenges to university administrators and trustees is to balance affordability with the quality imperative. The College does have a very significant program of financial aid, and that ensures access to our programs by students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds.”In his letter distributed to students Tuesday, Jackson mentioned measures intended to save money. “We are about to implement a cogeneration project, which ultimately will allow us to generate steam and electricity for our campuses at considerable savings,” Jackson wrote. “Through self-insurance, we have helped to slow down increases in costs for health care benefits for our faculty and staff. Through our purchasing office, we are finding broad economies of scale that further contain our costs.” Faced with rising costs of tuition and room and board, some students are beginning to worry about whether they can afford college.”I feel guilty going to school because I know I can’t do anything about it and I can’t get school scholarships because I’m not from New York state,” sophomore Lauren Kessler said. Freshman Jarrel Jenkins shares concern about the increased price. “I can’t even pay for the tuition now,” he said. “I don’t know why they’re increasing it.””I think the [consumer price index] is a lot lower than the amount they are raising [tuition],” sophomore and Students Association Senator Nathaniel Powell said. “My fundamental problem is that it represents the corporatization of the university – they are out to gain a profit.”Paprocki disagrees. “Inflationary indices like the CPI don’t accurately reflect the economic dynamic of colleges and universities,” he said. Some students have taken a more cynical view. “What are we getting for the extra $2,000?” junior Talisha Phaeton said. “Are they going to landscape again?”Despite the tuition increase, Paprocki remains confident in UR’s education value. “I think that an education at Rochester represents a tremendous value in that it is an asset that remains with the individual for an entire lifetime,” Paprocki said. Additional reporting by Brian Goldner.Schnee can be reached at cschnee@campustimes.org.