UTPB tuition hike

Nick Johnson understands the proposed $8 per credit hour tuition increase question.

And the 22-year-old thinks it’s a good move, because it means good things for the students.

Johnson, a history and kinesiology senior, was one of about 12 students, faculty and staff to attend the second of two tuition hearings at the university on Monday evening.

UTPB President David Watts and Susan Lara, vice president for student services, discussed the proposed fees, which were signed off by the university’s Tuition Advisory Committee earlier this year.

The committee proposed an $8 per credit hour tuition increase for fall 2008 and another $6 per credit hour tuition increase for fall 2009.

With tuition support from the state Legislature declining, Watts said the public universities have been looking into ways to come up with the funding by raising tuition costs.

“Our choice is to raise tuition or not raise tuition,” Watts said.

Johnson said after the meeting that he’s in favor of the tuition increases, even though tuition increases may be hard to take at first.

“You see the benefit, and it’s worth it in the long run,” Johnson said.

During the presentation, Lara said the committee also proposed a $3 per credit hour increase for fall 2008 to the student services fee, which hasn’t been raised at UTPB since 1994.

With an influx in new student programs and services during the years, Lara said, the increase would benefit the university’s student life and academic areas such as student mentoring and supplemental instruction.

In addition, the committee proposed a $5 per credit hour increase to the athletic fee for fall 2008.

Johnson, a member of the UTPB men’s swim team, wants to see the athletic fee increase by $5 per credit hour so the NCAA Division II athletic department could provide more competitive salaries for coaches and more resources for the student athlete travel.

The athletic department’s $970,000 annual budget is lower than other universities similar in size, Johnson said.

“If you compare ours to other schools, we're far behind,” Johnson said.

Watts said he'll decide on a tuition recommendation for the UT System Board of Regents in early December, and the Regents would ultimately approve any tuition increases in March.

Max Jordon, Student Athlete Advisory Committee president, said students will be able to vote on the athletic and the student services fees starting today at the university. He encouraged them to especially approve the athletic fee because state law requires a majority of students to approve the measure.

Jordon, a 20-year-old biology senior, said he’d like to graduate from UTPB knowing it’s in good shape.

“I’d just like to see a legacy of strong athletics and strong academics,” he said.

>> A student taking 15 credit hours would see a $240 per semester increase for all proposed increases in fall 2008.

>> A student taking 15 credit hours in fall 2009 would see a $90 per semester increase for all proposed increases.

>> 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. today in the University of Texas of the Permian Basin’s Mesa Building Foyer.

>> A $3-per-credit-hour student services fee increase. This increase would increase resources for students to attend more conferences or start new clubs. This increase will be voted on as an advisory vote to aid the UTPB administration in its decision making of whether to approve the fee increase.

>> A $5 per-credit-hour athletic fee increase. This increase would allow for more competitive coaches salaries and travel budget money for student athletic trips. State law requires this increase to be approved by a majority of the student body to go through.

>> Any currently enrolled UTPB student.

>> The UT System Board of Regents approves any tuition increases at any of the system’s nine universities.

>> For more information, contact UTPB president David Watts at president@utpb.edu.

Sources: UTPB president David Watts and UTPB Student Senate President Iris Fierro