UC, Cal State Boost Fees
Press-Enterprise 3/15/07
Increases of 7 percent at University of California campuses and 10 percent at California State system's universities mean that tuition and fees have nearly doubled in six years, a trend that some students and experts fear will make it even tougher for low- and middle-income families to send their children to college.
"It's like adding fuel to the fire -- the intensity of the hardship will just increase," said Abraham Ramirez, 23, a Cal State Fullerton senior who addressed Cal State trustees at their meeting at Cal State Long Beach.
Ramirez said he didn't know how he would pay the higher costs. He already works 38 hours a week at two part-time jobs as an office assistant in a law firm and a paid campus intern in student outreach.
"The student fees keep going up, and the executive pay raises keep going up," Ramirez told the trustees. "I think it's crucial that you guys address your priorities here."
Executive pay and perks at the University of California have been a source of mounting public criticism in recent years.
Cal State Up $252
The Cal State trustees voted 16-1 to approve a 2007-08 budget that increases annual undergraduate tuition and fees by $252 to $2,772. Graduate fees will increase by $312 a year. Cal State leaders said they will repeal the increase if state lawmakers find more money for the system in June.
Also on Wednesday, the UC regents met at UCLA and voted 13-6 to raise undergraduate fees by $435 -- plus a $60 surcharge approved in 2005 to recoup losses from a class action lawsuit filed by professional school students -- to $6,636. When other miscellaneous fees are added -- amounts that vary from one campus to another -- the average annual cost rises to $7,347.
The members of each governing board are appointed by the governor. They range from lawyers and businesspeople to alumni and professors. Cal State has 20 appointed trustees. UC has 18 appointed regents. Each board also has ex-officio members, including the governor.
Fee increases were part of an agreement reached by Gov. Schwarzenegger and leaders of the UC and Cal State systems in 2004. Cal State officials said the increases are needed to help offset $500 million in cuts brought on by the state budget crisis since 2002. The systems are still recovering from those budget cuts while battling rising costs.
Fees did not increase last year because the state found more money for the UC and Cal State systems.
The increases come as students are graduating with more debt, working more hours and taking fewer classes each quarter or semester, which costs them more in the long term because it takes them longer to graduate, according to a recent report from the California Postsecondary Education Commission, an advisory panel to state lawmakers on higher-education issues.
The governor has proposed to increase Cal Grant awards -- money that does not need to be repaid -- by $16 million to offset fee increases, according to a UC statement issued Wednesday.
Low-Income Students
Higher-education experts said the fee increases would harm students, particularly those from low- and middle-income families.
"Low-income students are clearly hurt the most," said Joni Finney, vice president of the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education in San Jose.
Also hurt are middle-class families, who earn too much money to qualify for student aid but not enough to pay for college outright, other experts said.
"The total cost of attendance has really gotten somewhat out of hand for many families, especially the middle-income families," said Murray Haberman, executive director of the California Postsecondary Education Commission.
The tuition increases come even as costs that are not fee- related, including transportation, housing and textbooks, continue to climb. Those expenses rose 32 percent at UC campuses and 21 percent at Cal State schools from 1994 to 2003, according to a report the commission released recently.
Haberman said the state should find money in the budget so no increase is needed this year as well as implement a four-year freeze on tuition and boost grants and loan-forgiveness programs.
Students who expect to take on even more debt as tuition rises are making life-changing decisions as a result, Haberman said. These include choosing majors that will lead to higher-paying jobs and delaying marriage or home purchases.
'It's a Huge Burden'
UC Riverside sophomore Jared McCreary, who attended the regents' meeting, said he works 40 hours a week on campus and will have to find a second job to cover the increase.
"I'm trying to make ends meet," said the 19-year-old political science and history major. "All this added stress and extra work, my GPA has slipped dramatically. It's a huge burden."
Jonathan Brown, president of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities, said the state needs to develop a long-term plan to ensure predictable increases in tuition.
Cal State trustee Lou Monville, a Riverside public-relations executive, said he was not happy about the increase.
"I think it's a reality of the state's current fiscal crisis," he said.
Professors and lecturers at several CSU campuses have started voting on whether to strike over stalled contract talks.
Cal State San Bernardino President Al Karnig and others said the Cal State fees remain among the lowest in the nation.
The State University of New York at Albany, a similar school, charges resident undergraduates $6,727 a year.
Mark Wyatt, vice president for marketing and communications at California Baptist University in Riverside, said it is too soon to tell whether the higher fees will lead to increased enrollment there.
Cal Baptist charges $19,030 tuition, according to The College Board Web site.
"I suppose it's possible some students may choose to attend a private school, and we would be interested in responding to their inquiries," he said.