Cal Poly student fees may go up
SLO Tribune 3/12/07
The university’s student government has publicly spoken out against the increase.
And several students on the university campus Friday said they could afford the potential fee increase, but that they’d like to see direct benefits of a higher bill.
"For me, the money is not the issue," said Toji Sakamoto, a third-year Cal Poly recreation administration student. "We just want to see that money used toward benefiting the students."
CSU’s Board of Trustees is expected to vote on the fee increase as part of a two-day meeting scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.
If approved, undergraduates would pay an additional $252 per year making their fees $2,772 next year. Graduate students would pay an additional $312 per year, to a total of $3,414.
The agreement anticipates a 2.5 percent increase in student enrollment.
Individual campuses have their own fees on top of the base CSU fees. For example, undergraduate fees at Cal Poly are now $4,350 for a year.
If the proposed increase is approved, CSU student fees will have gone up 94 percent since 2002.
The 10 percent increase would support general costs to run the 23-campus university system, including payroll, operations, buildings and technology, said CSU spokeswoman Claudia Keith.
"The CSU still would have the lowest fees of any comparable university system in the country," Keith said. "And with any fee increase, we put one-third of those dollars towards financial aid."
An agreement between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and leaders of the University of California and CSU systems allows a maximum fee increase of up to 10 percent in any given year through 2011, leaving room for a larger increase in extreme situations, Keith said.
The California Faculty Association is also criticizing the proposal. It follows a 4 percent pay raise in January for the college system’s top executives.
The professors union has been stalled for months in labor negotiations, and Cal Poly union members are expected to vote on whether they’ll participate in a systemwide strike this spring.
"Student fees are going up yet again, making it more difficult for students to attend and stay to graduation," said John Travis, the union’s president, in a statement.
"The CSU administration refuses to fight for the needed level of state funding, which results in, among so many things, the loss of important student services," he added.
The president of Cal Poly’s Associated Students Inc. said the student government doesn’t support the fee increase.
"ASI is a member of the California State Student Association, which has an official position against the fee increase," Todd Macki, the Cal Poly ASI president, noted.
"We support their policy agenda that the fee should not be applied because it affects students’ accessibility to education," he added.
Freshman Kristin Roberts, a 19-year-old soil science student, said she adamantly opposed the fee increase.
"I would still pay it, but college is getting more and more expensive, especially with the cost of books and everything," Roberts said.
Sophomore Danielle Diebert said she would support the increase, even though she pays for her own education and works two jobs.
"I guess I’d have to know a little better exactly where the money would go," Diebert said. "But if it actually helps the campus, yes, I’d support it."