The Southern Illinois University (SIU) Board of Trustees approved a 5 percent tuition hike for in-state undergraduates attending Edwardsville (E) for the 2013-14 academic year along with a 3 percent increase at the Carbondale (C) campus.
The 5 percent raise translates to $7,295.40, a $347.40 hike from the existing tuition of $6,948 per year.
The board also gave a nod to a $198 annual increase for SIUE graduate students and a 3 percent annual raise for students attending professional schools including Dental, Medicine and Pharmacy for the coming fall.
Initially, the SIUE administration demanded a 7 percent/$486 tuition hike, which would have charged incoming freshmen up to $7,434 per year. On the other hand, Carbondale officials sought a 5 percent hike, but received just 3 percent.
The SIU President Glenn Poshard, who proposed a 5 percent increase at both the campuses, said that majority of students have already made their choice for fall, so any tuition raises will not affect the enrolments at the university.
Poshard said that for the past few years, the university has been facing severe state budget cuts with roughly a $45 million deficit. Plus, Gov. Pat Quinn is probably going to slash another 5 percent in next years' budget.
"Without these tuition and fee increases, it will be difficult for us to maintain the kind of quality that we're used to, to fulfill our obligations to our faculty and staff and still stay in the running for good faculty and staff to come to our campuses," Poshard said.
One of the trustee members, Roger Herrin, believes that tuition hikes are not the only solution to increase funding. The university can also look toward increasing its enrolments instead of shifting the burden on students' shoulders.
Herrin said that if the university boosted its admissions by approximately 100 students, it will add $1 million into the university's account.
Backing the board's decision, Poshard claimed that even with the original 7 percent hike, the university would have the lowest tuition among all other higher education universities in the state, while SIUC's tuition rate is the lowest among research universities.
