The Longwood University Board of Visitors (BOV) has approved another tuition increase for the upcoming academic year. This year, the tuition per credit hour was $163 for on-campus classes taken by in state students. Beginning, Fall 2010 there will be a $16 increase, driving the fees up to $179 per credit hour for in-state students. The news comes as Longwood looks toward fiscal year (FY) 2012, when the stimulus funds the university now receives will be all used. "We are working on our budget for next year already and we look at the prices and costs we know we're going to have," said Vice President for Administration and Finance Kathy Worster. "Then we back into the tuition increase to try to cover the expenses that we know we're going to have."
Worster cited numerous reasons for the tuition increase approved by the BOV on March 26. Much of it is a fix to the lack of money for services the university provides. Among those is the maintenance services on university used software, such as Blackboard, Banner, and the financial system used by Student Accounts. Utilities are also increasing, especially fuel for state vehicles. Worster said the best thing the university is able to do is to estimate at what costs will go up and how much money will be needed.
"As a student, you expect to have a certain level of education, a certain number of professors, certain size classes. We are trying to maintain that the best we can," she said. "We look at our total costs and the sources of revenue we have and see if there is a gap. That's what causes an increase."
Student Government Association President Cam Patterson said "With this increase, it will give us a little cushion room and in my opinion, it will ensure we won't have to burden another midyear tuition increase." He said the approval for fall may mean no midyear increase like Longwood experience this past December. Patterson attended the March 26 meeting.
During their Dec. 4-5, 2009, meeting, The Rotunda reported the BOV voted unanimously to approve a 4.5 percent tuition increase, bringing the cost from $156 per credit hour to its current rate. Patterson said the opinions that students professed regarding the midyear increase last December were taken into effect during the BOV meeting.
"Instead of having a huge increase in 2012.we try to trim in the cause so nobody has a huge increase in cost," said Worster. "We try to build it up a little bit at a time so the cost goes up gradually."
Patterson said, "Longwood has probably been the boldest in their increase for next year." He said many schools are holding off to see what other state institutions are going to do. "We're not getting anymore money, so why hold out when you can [increase] now?" Patterson said the university needed to be careful not to make that bold stance something "drastic."
Longwood is the first Virginia institution to announce a tuition increase for next year. "You'll probably find many other institutions will be more conservative with their increases. But when you're conservative with your increases," said Patterson, "it does lead to the possibility to a midyear increase. I don't think that's the route we want to go."
Worster said if the university stuck with the consumer price index data figures since 1996, Longwood would charge only $21 less than they are now. "We'd like to be tied to an index so we'd jut have to increase it for the cost of living every year." However, with the state holding the university's tuition back, they have not been able to do that.
She said that Gov. McDonnell has yet to finish looking over the budgets, so the BOV will look over the increase tuition in May to make sure there are no changes that need to be made. She said the likelihood of another increase is very low and if anything, the price may go down if money is available. "If the economy comes back and is better by 2012, we cold possibly get more money from the state."
"They [BOV] were going to consider pushing off approval until May," said Patterson. However, he and other students felt the approval would be more appropriate now since students were still on campus.
Worster said without money from the state for in-state students, the university has no choice but to fill the gap left for the students. "We want to be able for you to complete your degree in the amount of time that the catalog says to complete it with the classes that the catalog says you can take."
Junior William Bishop said the increase is nothing new to him. "It is not surprising that tuition is being increased." As a junior, Bishop has seen his fair share of tuition increases since arriving at Longwood.
Freshman Kaitlin Shiflett said, "I don't really think it should have gone up. But as long as I can still reasonably afford school, I'm okay with it." She said she hopes Longwood will use the funds for improvement to the school and its services and not put it toward sports.
"I think that students are probably going to ask questions about why. I think it will be the responsibility of the SGA, the responsibility of the administration to communicate the reason for which the increase.was a necessary one," said Patterson.
Worster said, "We want Longwood to stay Longwood. That's why we do this."
The BOV will hold an executive meeting in May after graduation. There next full meeting will be June 10-12.
