Friday, December 4, 2009
Laura Vaughn
News Editor
A 32-percent increase in undergraduate tuition fees was approved by the University of California Board of Regents at a Nov. 20 meeting on the UCLA campus in order to help alleviate the $535 million budget deficit within the UC system.
This price hike equates to a $2,500 increase, putting the annual cost of tuition for UC schools over $10,000 for the first time. Not including housing and supplies fees, which can cost up to $16,000, tuition will be $10,302. Tuition will gradually increase, starting with $585 this spring and then an additional $1,344 in the fall.
“The increase in fees will have an impact on our students, especially those whose parents have lost their jobs,” Mira Costa College and Career Center Counselor Gail Currey said.
The UC Board of Regents is a panel responsible for overseeing the finance and overall governance of the 10 UC schools. It is composed of 25 adult members as well as one student member.
Of the 21 members that attended the meeting, all voted in favor of increasing tuition with the exception of the student regent.
“The decision is ridiculous and it makes me question why I’m going to a UC school for a public education when I am receiving cuts on everything but paying more for it,” UCLA sophomore Jessica Altshuler said.
The decision was strongly opposed by students throughout the UC system. A crowd of over 2,000 student protesters stood outside the UCLA campus building while the meeting was taking place.
Students marched onto the streets of Westwood and around the campus. One student was arrested and many classes were cancelled for the day.
“Even though UCLA is a public campus, the building where they had the meeting is privately owned, so they were allowed to keep the protesters out,” Altshuler said.
Despite the tuition increase, the board promised that there will be more financial aid in order to prevent students from dropping out. Many students attend UC schools because they are inexpensive; therefore, the increase could be an issue for students who already struggle to afford the tuition.
“The complaints against the UC Regents should really be directed at our state government. They are the ones who have control over the budget and should make education a much higher priority,” MBUSD school board President Nancy Hersman said.
Last year, the UC Regents Finance Committee proposed a 9.4 percent raise in undergraduate tuition. However, as funding for education has decreased, the board was forced to take more drastic measures.
“We don’t have the money. I hate to say it, but when you have no choice, you have no choice. We do not have the money to continue to run UC’s,” UC President Mark Yudof said to the Los Angeles Times.
The decision was made 10 days before UC applications were due on Nov. 30 and could have affected the number of UC applicants this year and in the future. However, the Board of Admissions extended the application deadline to Dec. 2, which may increase the number of applicants.
“While I think the tuition increase is generally discouraging for all applicants, the UC campuses still remain considerably less expensive than private schools and out-of-state public schools,” senior Amie Simmons said.
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