The Board of Trustees announced today that there will be a five percent increase in the term bill for the 2007-08 school year, in the amount of $2,138. According to the letter released by President Seligman, the augment in tuition was attributed to “improvements to classrooms, information technology and the infrastructure that keeps the College competitive with the very best.” These vague assignments are extremely dissatisfying.
An increase in tuition is understandable and necessary due to inflation, increasing prices and the need to remain competitive.But, a better explanation of tuition distribution and how the increased funds will be used must be relayed to students.
One concern is the continual increase in housing costs with very few noticeable improvements to housing facilities. Is this money going toward changes and updates in current housing, or is it going toward saving money to build a new residence hall in the near future? The same questions can be asked about dining. Very few immediate changes can be noticed in dining services. Will the increase be used toward the strategic plans laid out for the future?
Students would certainly be willing to accept tuition increases if they knew that the money was going toward more professors, advanced research, improved facilities and overall quality of their education at UR – but they need to be made fully aware of these intentions and planned changes.
It is unfortunate that Monday’s “How UR Tuition is Spent” program had to be cancelled, and rescheduling is imperative to making the new tuition escalation more widely accepted by the student body. Hopefully, this program will provide in-depth information about University spending to allay the concerns of the students, who are paying top-dollar for their four years here.
If the University wishes to raise tuition on the students year after year, the students deserve a detailed and comprehensive breakdown of where exactly the money is going.
