by Caleb Fort
Daily Lobo
The Board of Regents unanimously approved a 3.8 percent tuition increase Tuesday.
The board also approved a 1.6 percent fee increase.
The tuition increase will go toward things such as marketing, hiring minority faculty and establishing an office of institutional diversity.
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"Coming to UNM will be my third presidency," said David Schmidly, who will begin his term June 1. "This is, without question, the best budget situation I've ever come into. The fact that we're able to do all this with a 3.8 percent increase is pretty incredible."
The resolution for the tuition increase included a 5 percent salary increase for faculty.
Tuition and fees for undergraduate residents will increase from $4,335 to $4,570 per year.
The increase will give the University about $3.4 million
annually.
Brittany Jaeger, president of ASUNM, said she doesn't mind the tuition increase.
"It's something that students are paying out of their pockets," she said. "But these programs are going to give back to the students."
The 2006 tuition increase was 3.37 percent. Most of that increase was a 3 percent tuition credit, a tuition increase mandated by the Legislature.
"A year ago, you approved a tuition increase that was similar to this one," said Curt Porter, associate vice president of Budget, Planning and Analysis. "But you didn't really get anything new out of it. Without the tuition credit this year, we're able to go ahead with these initiatives for the same cost to students."
Joseph Garcia, president of GPSA, said he supports the intention behind the increase.
"I'm not against it, in principle," he said. "UNM is very inexpensive compared to other institutions. The question is: Is it going to make a difference? It's nice to create new initiatives, but they often don't accomplish what they're supposed to. I hope this one does."
Here's a look at what students' money will pay for, according to a handout from Porter:
"Must fund" items - $1 million
Includes unrealized revenue, health insurance, risk management, graduate student tuition waivers and faculty promotions.
Retention and graduation initiatives - $750,000
$200,000 to revise core English and math courses. Some of the changes include more eight-week courses, online courses and courses to improve studying and time management.
$200,000 to allow
departments to offer extra sections of popular classes in response to student demand without having to go through the traditional budget cycle.
$200,000 for more students to be employed on campus through work study and graduate assistantships.
$150,000 for more staff members at CAPS and other tutoring centers.
Division of Institutional Diversity - $550,000
The division will be led by a vice president of institutional diversity. The division's charge is to recruit and retain minority
students, faculty and personnel and provide support to the ethnic student centers.
Division of Enrollment Management - $450,000
$250,000 will fund an office led by a vice president with the responsibility of increasing enrollment. The office will also be responsible for improving the University's admissions system.
$200,000 for out-of-state recruiting in places like California and Texas.
Marketing and branding initiatives - $300,000
$200,000 to contract a marketing firm to develop a
strategy and theme for implementing UNM's brand.
$50,000 to create TV ads, DVDs and online videos.
$50,000 to match money spent on advertising by schools, colleges and programs, if the advertising also promotes the
University.
Minority faculty funding - $200,000
The office of the provost will be responsible for the money, which will be used to increase faculty diversity. The money can be used for recruitment, creation of new positions, counter-offers and hiring before a position is vacant.
