University of Michigan Board of Regents approves 1.5% tuition increase
A typical in-state University of Michigan student will pay 1.5 percent more to attend the school when classes start in the fall.
The U-M Board of Regents approved the hike in conjunction with a big boost to financial aid programs Thursday afternoon as part of the 2010-2011 general fund budget.
The $1.55 billion budget includes the lowest resident undergraduate tuition increase since 1984 and an additional $8.3 million contribution in in-house financial aid to negate the increase for in-state students, U-M Provost Teresa Sullivan said.
University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman gives opening remarks at today's meeting.
Lon Horwedel | AnnArbor.com
A new economic hardship program for middle income families will offer additional $500 grants to in-state residents who qualify.
But there's a catch: The lower-than-usual increase is contingent on a contribution of $315.1 million from the state. A mid-year tuition increase is possible if state funding falls through, Sullivan said.
The increase means 30 credits will cost an in-state freshman in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts an additional $178 for a total yearly bill of $11,837. Combined with a 3 percent increase to room and board - to $9,192 - which the U-M Board of Regents approved in May - a typical in-state undergraduate will now pay $21,029 annually to attend and live at the school.
The general fund pays for academic programming, and is funded primarily by tuition and a contribution of tax dollars from the state.
Not all U-M regents approved the hike. Denise Ilitch and Andrea Fischer-Newman voted against the measure.
"We can do more and we must lead by example," Ilitch said. "University of Michigan has a longstanding history of tuition increases. It should no longer be the assumption that we increase tuition. Instead, we should ask, 'How should we avoid it?'"
U-M Regent Denise Ilitch voted against the increase.
U-M President Mary Sue Coleman and several other regents lauded U-M's efforts to save $159 million over seven years by focusing on savings in areas such as IT, energy and water costs, cuts to travel and hosting, space utilization and greater employee contributions to health care costs, as well as the increase in financial aid to middle-income families.
But over the last few decades, tuition alone has far outpaced the cost of living. Between 1990 and 2010, inflation was 64 percent, but tuition increased 233 percent at U-M. Looking at just the last decade, inflation was 29 percent, while tuition increased 84 percent.
It's a trend the school worked hard to halt this year, while trying to maintain quality and keep class sizes low, officials said. The budget includes the money to hire 50 additional faculty to keep class sizes small, Sullivan added.
Did Eastern Michigan University's "0 0 0" initiative, which froze tuition, room and board and fees at $8,377, impact U-M's budget process?
No, said Phil Hanlon, vice provost for academic and budgetary affairs. Every university is different and sets tuition according to its unique needs, he said.
But Ilitch may have pointed to the program to support her feeling that U-M could do more to keep costs down.
"Other universities have stepped up to control tuition," she said. "We can do this without compromising quality."
Other students at U-M will pay more than the 1.5 percent increase approved for in-state undergraduate freshmen, though doctoral candidates will notice a decrease. Other changes approved today include:
- 2.8 percent hikes in tuition for resident and non-resident graduate students. Those students will pay $498 and $1,000 per year, respectively.
- Doctoral candidates will see tuition fall by 15.4 percent, or $1,760 per year.
- Out-of-state students will pay 3 percent more to attend U-M next school year, an increase of $1,064 to $36,001.
"We have been acutely aware of the economic pressures facing many families," Coleman said.
The University of Michigan is the fourth of the state's 15 public universities to set tuition for next school year, said Michael Boulous, executive director of the Lansing-based Presidents Council, State Universities of Michigan.
Eastern Michigan University held its tuition and room and board steady this year at $8,377, while the Michigan Technological University and Saginaw Valley State University boards approved 5.9 percent hikes. Michigan State University will set its tuition Friday.
For a full list of next school year's tuition rates, click here.
Juliana Keeping covers higher education for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at julianakeeping@annarbor.com or 734-623-2528. Follow Juliana Keeping on Twitter
Comments
DonBee
Sat, Jun 19, 2010 : 10:21 p.m.
Interesting twist. Now that the UofM has sort of followed EMU, MSU backed off their tuition increase. It was to be almost 5 percent and will now be 2.5 percent. Thank you EMU for starting a trend.
Marc Williams
Sat, Jun 19, 2010 : 1:25 p.m.
@tredd Higher education isn't a right but we have a history of funding our public institutions as an investment in our future. Some form of higher education should be available to everyone regardless of economic means. Higher education benefits everyone.
trespass
Fri, Jun 18, 2010 : 2:57 p.m.
"Ninety-two percent of graduate students pursing a doctorate are fully supported by U-M" What this really means is that they are funded by research grants, so increasing tuition is a way for the UM to soak the taxpayers with ever increasing costs. The UM Administration was mad at researchers who would tell their students that they did not have to register for classes once they were spending full time in the lab. UM wanted more tuition money from the grants.
trespass
Fri, Jun 18, 2010 : 1:34 p.m.
"Doctoral candidates will see tuition fall by 15.4 percent, or $1,760 per year" Julianna, please put this in context. This was because of a change in policy that requires Doctoral candidates to maintain "continuous enrollment". The overall cost of a Doctoral degree has gone up. The UM is fond of saying that the state contribution to their budget is on 7% but that reflects large increases in reimbursments for medical care provided by the U, increases in research grants and distributions from the endowment (mostly for research and research recruitment). Thus, only about $1.5 billion dollars out of their $5 billion dollar budget goes for the educational expenses of the University. The state contribution almost exactly matches the difference between in-state and out-state tuition. However, the UM totally ignores the contribution that property and sales taxpayers make to UM. Ann Arbor residents should think about that the next time UM complains about their state funding. The real driver of increased tuition costs is the competition to recruit faculty that have federal research grants. It is more like the increased ticket costs for college and professional football teams rather than having anything to do with inflation.
Hiba the Great
Fri, Jun 18, 2010 : 12:36 p.m.
For the most part, I do agree with Marshall Applewhite. However, there are a few students who couldn't go to the UofM, not because they weren't accepted, but simply because they couldn't afford it. Even with financial aid, there are many students who have to choose to go to a different school because even the aid isn't enough. It's a lot more common than people would expect, and frankly, I think it's very sad that people who deserve to go to Michigan can't get in because they can't pay for it. UMich is already expensive as it is, and they have SO much money.
KJMClark
Fri, Jun 18, 2010 : 7:30 a.m.
And let me put in one more rhetorical question: suppose I have kids that might go to UM some day (which, actually, I do). What investment can I make right now that's returning 1.5% (assuming the state gives UM everything it wants)? Or, considering the increase in room and board as well, that's an increase of about 2.2% over last year, what investment is returning 2.2% now?. The only investment class I can think of increasing at that rate right now is gold. Does that say something about how the University sees itself?
KJMClark
Fri, Jun 18, 2010 : 7:15 a.m.
There's another good article waiting to be written between DonBee and Ms. Keeping's comments. State funding for universities increased 10% between 1999 and 2009. How does that compare to inflation over that period? At the same time, "In the past, students paid less because the state paid more. At U-M, the state contributed 77 percent of the general fund in 1960, compared to 22 percent in the current school year." But did the state really pay more, or have university costs risen so much faster than inflation and state contributions that the fraction paid by the state has fallen? And how does the state contribution compare to the changes in state revenue? Is this a matter of the state not contributing like it used to as a percentage of state revenue, or the university raising prices at an inexorable rate? Or put another way, has the state fallen down on its promise to higher education, or has the University given up on being the university of Michigan?
tredd
Fri, Jun 18, 2010 : 5:11 a.m.
I'm torn by the info concerning state funding. First off, I don't see nor have I heard of an enrollment deficit at the U. This tells me everyone there can/is able to pay in some fashion. The fact that they pay more seems okay in that they are the ones getting the education. I'm not convinced that higher education is a right, so therefore let the people who are attending pay their own way. Some will say "but wait, what about all of those out of state students taking up space?". To this point I have to draw your attention to the fact that they pay WAY MORE than in state students so the U probably likes to keep them coming. To the extent that out-of-staters stop in-staters from getting in I think we have a problem. However, if this is not actually the case then I don't see the problem. I am a grad from the early 80's and getting ready to send my first (and only) to the U. Do I wish it was as cheap as when I went? Sure! Do I think that others should help pay my child's way? Not really. Of course, I've used my U education (and my wife hers as well) to go out and earn a decent enough living that we can afford to pay the tuition. Those that can't afford it are definitely upset, but that doesn't mean they should necessarily get subsidized.
Juliana Keeping
Thu, Jun 17, 2010 : 9:37 p.m.
Marc, I indeed have a document that details what you're talking about. But since it's not on me at this very moment, here's a line from a story I wrote on Sunday: " In the past, students paid less because the state paid more. At U-M, the state contributed 77 percent of the general fund in 1960, compared to 22 percent in the current school year. " We have linked to the recent article in the above text.
DonBee
Thu, Jun 17, 2010 : 8:51 p.m.
Mr Williams - According to the MI.GOV website (executive budgets) In 1999 Community Colleges received $282 million and in 2009 $299 million - an increase of $17 million over 10 years. In 1999 Universities received $1.6 billion and in 2009 $1.76 billion - an increase of $160 million over 10 years. In neither case does the increase keep up with inflation. I hope this helps.
Marc Williams
Thu, Jun 17, 2010 : 8:22 p.m.
At one time the people of Michigan believed funding public higher education was an investment in the state's future. That was reflected in the decisions of our representatives. Tuition has increased but state funding has decreased. It would be nice if the story provided the yearly decrease in state funding to compare against the yearly increase in tuition.
DonBee
Thu, Jun 17, 2010 : 6:30 p.m.
Mr Applewhite - I agree with you completely. However, there is state money on the table to be divided between the various higher education institutes and if EMU did 0/0/0 and the UofM had done a 10 percent tuition increase, how do you think the out state members of the state House and Senate would have divided the pie? They may not compete for the same students, but they do compete for the same pot of state funds.
Marshall Applewhite
Thu, Jun 17, 2010 : 6:14 p.m.
I somehow doubt that UofM and EMU are fighting over the same pool of applicants, with cost being the deciding factor for enrollment.......
DonBee
Thu, Jun 17, 2010 : 6:01 p.m.
Thank you EMU for 0/0/0. It is helping to keep the cost down across the universities, even if the UofM does not want to admit it. Thank you, thank you.