2:45pm | The California State University Board of Trustees will hear recommendations to increase tuition across its 23 campuses in both this school year and the next during their meeting next week. The trustees will meet on Monday and Tuesday at CSU headquarters at 401 Golden Shore in downtown Long Beach.
The proposed increases would raise student tuition by 5% during the Spring 2011 session, and another 10% for the full 2011-2012 school year. This after the board approved a 5% tuition increase back in June 2010.
Funding for the CSU has been cut from the state budget by more than $625 million over the past two budget sessions. The system has only recently recovered enough to begin re-instituting some classes and accepting higher enrollment numbers.
This past summer, the board had planned to raise tuition by 10% across the board, but indications from state legislators in Sacramento were that increases in funding would make that unnecessary. The board approved a 5% increase in June and hoped that those budget promises would come true.
“The board was optimistic, so the raise was limited to 5-percent [rather than ten],” says CSU spokesperson Mike Uhlenkamp. “Once the budget was finalized, unfortunately that $50 million in revenue fell out, so we’re back to where we are in need of about $50 million.”
The CSU received a $200 million increase in funding, but even that along with $106 million in one-time Stimulus funds weren’t enough to make up the difference over the long-term. That’s why the Board of Trustees will consider an additional 5% tuition increase next week to take effect in the Spring 2011 semester, says Uhlenkamp.
“Unfortunately, it has to fall on the students,” he said today.
If approved, the Spring 2011 increase coupled with last June’s increase will equal the 10% full school year increase that the board had originally hoped to avoid in the first place.
Anticipating similar difficulties in the coming year’s state budget, the other agendized tuition increase will add an additional 10% to the 2011-2012 school year. Uhlenkamp says the CSU will include a proposal that the state buyout the remaining revenue needed so that increase will not be necessary. But any hopes for a hand from the state seems far-fetched in this economic climate.
“At this point, we can be optimistic,” Uhlenkamp says.