Henderson State University and Southern Arkansas University trustees voted to increase tuition and mandatory fees at board meetings Thursday, citing many of the same reasons as other public universities that have bumped up their rates for the 2014-15 academic year: higher utility costs, employee raises and a lack of state funding.
At HSU in Arkadelphia, tuition and mandatory fees for a student taking 30 credit hours over two semesters will rise 3.82 percent, from $7,284 to $7,562.
Tuition and mandatory fees at SAU in Magnolia will go up 3.65 percent, from $7,406 to $7,676, for a student taking 30 credit hours over two semesters.
The increases follow a trend among public universities in Arkansas. Trustees for the University of Arkansas System, the Arkansas State University System and Arkansas Tech University voted to increase tuition and mandatory fees for the 2014-15 academic year at meetings earlier this month.
Tuition and fees for the average full-time undergraduate taking 30 credit hours in 2014-15 at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, the state's largest campus, will rise 5 percent ($8,209); ASU-Jonesboro rates will go up 2.8 percent ($7,720); and Arkansas Tech increased its prices by 4.77 percent ($7,248).
In addition, University of Central Arkansas trustees are expected to approve a 3.86 percent increase at their board meeting today, increasing costs to $7,889 for 2014-15.
Several universities and systems cited higher operating costs and cost-of-living raises for faculty as the main reasons for the increases.
"Utilities are going to be an important part of that," said SAU President David Rankin about his institution's 3.65 percent increase. "That's probably going to be the largest factor."
HSU President Glen Jones said that while he's sensitive to the needs of students and their families, the 3.82 percent increase for students was necessary because of those same factors.
HSU will give a 1.5 percent raise to its faculty starting in January. Staff members who make less than $100,000 per year will get the raise, too.
"Our people, I think, deserve an increase in salary," Jones said. "Our salaries here have been historically low. It's one of my top concerns."
Rankin said SAU faculty might also get a pay raise, but a decision about that won't be made until after fall enrollment is finalized.
SAU also raised its library, technology and facilities fees to improve buildings and upgrade resources on campus, Rankin said.
"A campus like this that's been here since 1909, you have some buildings that need continuous maintenance and repair," he said.
SAU spokesman Aaron Street said a lot of the university's fee increases are a result of student requests.
"We've listened to our students and what they want," he said.
Street said that in the past students have supported fees for things such as concerts and the building of a student recreation center.
The increase in tuition and mandatory fees at HSU will go toward the university's strategic plan, which includes projects that will improve student services, address quality-of-life issues for faculty and staff, pay for maintenance of the university's aging facilities, and enhance current academic programs and create new ones, Jones said.
Ricki Rebollar, a graduate student in counseling at HSU, said he supports the increases.
"More money in fees means more things we can do on campus," he said.
Jones said HSU's funding from the state is nearly stagnant, which, combined with a 5 percent decrease in student enrollment in fall 2013, adds to the need for the bump in tuition.
"We're very grateful for the state support we get," he said. "But we have to note that our increase in state funding was less than 0.5 percent this year."
A lack of state funding has been a common refrain among officials from most of the state's public universities.
"We haven't been able to keep up in terms of state funding, which would decrease the burden on families," said Shane Broadway, director of the Arkansas Department of Higher Education.
Broadway said the state has been dealing with budget issues of its own. And when dealing with limited resources, programs such as kindergarten-through-12th-grade education come first.
"You've got a finite amount of resources, an infinite number of requests," he said. "Once you fund those essential services, there's not a lot left for higher education."
But Broadway said this isn't a problem unique to Arkansas, and other states have had a harder time finding money for higher education.
"Compared to other states that are taking drastic cuts like Louisiana and some others, we're not going to complain," he said.
The cost of going to college in Arkansas has increased steadily over the past 10 years. Tuition and mandatory fees for a student taking 30 credit hours over two semesters at HSU was $4,168 in the 2004-05 school year, almost half of the approved $7,562 price tag for next year. A student at SAU next year will pay more than four times what he would have paid in 2004-05, when the cost of tuition and mandatory fees was $1,845.
Dillon Fogle, president of the SAU Student Government Association, said he understands the pressures facing university officials.
"From energy expenses to technology, the cost to run a University keeps increasing," he said in a statement. "Without more funding from the state or other sources, tuition has to be changed to meet the growing demands of a quality education. I applaud SAU on their efforts to keep costs low but still provide me with a great educational experience."
Despite the struggles facing public universities, Rankin said he is committed to serving SAU students as best he can.
"We're always looking at our budgets trying to trim them where we can," Rankin said. "But we want to offer a quality education."
Metro on 05/30/2014