Katie Schultz

News Editor

 

Tuition is on the rise. Associated Student Government (ASG) held a special session March 15 to vote on an additional two percent increase in tuition to help pay for the renovation of Houston Hall. 

The resolution was unanimously approved by the ASG and the Board of Trustees on March 17. The increase will be in addition to an annual inflation rate of seven percent. The total increase that students can expect to see next year will be nine percent. 

According to ASG Vice President Nick Lopez, now is the time to strike. Both construction cost and interest rates are at an all time low and overall it will save students $2 for every $1 spent. 

“This is overall going to benefit students in the long run,” Lopez said. “We couldn’t put off (the renovation) any longer.”

ASG understands that students will always be upset with a tuition increase, but backs the administration’s proposal to bring Houston Hall academically up to speed with the rest of the campus. 

“(Houston) is an icon,” President Tim Foster said. “But it is under performing, and it becomes more apparent as updates are made around campus.”

The administration, even with the downturn in the economy, feels that this increase will not break the student’s bank, because of financial aid and programs like Work Study and MAVworks. 

However, some students disagree. 

“I wish someone would sit down and say how can we help you,” said Abby Carter, sophomore mass communication major. 

Carter is from Wyoming and the continual increase of tuition, worries her. She may not be able to afford to come back to Mesa State.

“I love it here, but loans and scholarships are getting harder to get,” she said. 

She had to pay $2,000 out of her own pocket for this semester alone. 

“I understand that Houston needs the renovation and the construction gives people jobs, but I feel like (the administration) is forgetting about the little guy,” she said.

Freshman mass communication major Ryan Boyle feels the same. “It is definitely a good thing for the future and for the long term, but for the short term it is going to suck for those who have to pay it,” he said.

Yet even with the groans from students about the tuition increase, the administration said Houston Hall is the top priority on the road to renovation.

According to John Marshall, vice president for student affairs, all higher education institution with looming budget cuts will face a nine percent tuition increase, the only difference is that Mesa State will be using the increase to help fund a major project. 

“There is a general consensus that Houston Hall is badly in need of an upgrade,” Marshall said. “It is a big priority, that we as a campus agree on as one voice.”

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kschultz@mesastate.edu