Student Regent Jake Wellman said students should expect an increase in student fees next year to fund Athletics. In an interview with the Daily Lobo, Wellman spoke about the proposed $50 increase in student fees going to the Athletics Department and the proposal he put before the Board of Regents to phase in the increase over three years to ease the financial burden on students.
Daily Lobo: During the Budget Summit, you proposed increasing fees for the Athletics Department by $17 over the course of the next three years, rather than raising them by $50 in one year. Do you think the other regents will consider that proposal?
Jake Wellman: The final motion that passed on (March) 23 called for a full increase next year. I think we considered all options that were presented and discussed at the regents’ budget summit. Ultimately, (Board President Jack Fortner’s) proposed budget framework was approved as the regents’ collective direction for developing a comprehensive budget.
DL: How likely is it for students to see an athletics fee increase for next year?
JW: It is unlikely that the budget, which includes the $50 fee increase to fund the Athletics Department, will change. The president’s budget framework that was passed 4-1 (Wellman voted against the budget) at the Budget Summit included an increase in student Athletics fees by $50. The Student Fee Review Board, both student body presidents (ASUNM President Jaymie Roybal and GPSA President Katie Richardson) put in months of hard work on their student fee recommendations, and it is unfortunate that this increase was approved outside of that process. However, the clock had run out and the need for funding remained on the table.
DL: Why do you believe the board decided to keep that increase against the recommendations of the SFRB and the presidents of GPSA and ASUNM?
JW: Every regent is entrusted with the fiduciary responsibility of the University. That responsibility is twofold; to make sure that taxpayer and student money is spent wisely and to make sure that all of the units of the University have the resources to carry out their respective missions. The Athletics Department made the case that, due to rising costs of travel and student scholarships, combined with a hit from the state on their budget, they could not continue at the level of operation the University and state community expect of them without additional resources.
In order to keep our student athletes, who bring diverse experiences and great talent to UNM, we needed to include an increase in funding for Athletics in next year’s budget.
DL: What is your stance on the tuition increase?
JW: From my four years at UNM, this is the budget that most strongly aligns a modest tuition increase with helping students spend less time paying tuition at UNM. The 3.75 percent tuition increase will be reinvested in two crucial initiatives.
First and foremost, the Provost’s Academic Affairs budget plan will allow the University to hire 20 additional faculty positions, create an Honors College, overhaul our advisement systems and help us keep our best professors. The best way to build a better University is to bring more faculty to share their knowledge with students and the state. That is precisely what this budget will accomplish.
Second, this tuition increase sets aside 0.75 percent to offset students on need-based financial aid who would be financially impacted by an increase in tuition and fees. This policy of financial aid re-investment is the right way to keep UNM affordable to students.
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Overall, by investing in student success measures, we can help students save entire years of tuition by graduating in four years.
DL: What is the most important part of next year’s budget in terms of how it will affect student success at the University?
JW: The Provost’s Academic Affairs budget wedge (is the most important part of next year’s budget). The faculty and advisers it will bring to students and the financial aid re-investment policy are the elements that make this budget a transformative one for the University and students.
