by Lisa M. Chmiola
Staff Writer
Students at all four University of Houston System universities may have to uncover their stashes of cash in the fall semester to pay for tuition and fee increases.
Much of the proposed increase at the UH schools is in the form of a legislative mandated $2-per-credit-hour increase in undergraduate resident tuition, said Wendy Adair, UHS associate vice chancellor for public affairs.
The proposed increase, which will be presented to the Board of Regents next Thursday, would generate an estimated $4.7 million for the System, $1.9 million of which will go to UH.
"This has been an effort from the (Texas) Legislature to get a little more from the users," said Regent Beth Morian.
Four years ago, the state decided to set a rate of $40 per credit hour for undergraduate tuition, said Teri Flack, director of governmental relations and public information for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
However, the change was not implemented immediately, but instead in yearly $2-per-credit-hour increases, Flack said.
"Tuition for resident students is set in statute," she said. "The statute permits tuition to go up $2 a year every year until it reaches $40 (per credit hour)." She said the increases will continue until the year 2000, assuming they remain on the current schedule.
Tuition for the 1996-97 academic year was $32 per credit hour. It will increase to $34 per credit hour for 1997-98.
Flack added the increases are occurring at all public universities in the state.
The increase will raise a projected $1.46 million Systemwide - $970,487 at UH, $146,000 at UH-Clear Lake, $318,000 at UH-Downtown and $29,442 at UH-Victoria, according to the board's increase proposal.
The incremental increases also prevent large tuition increases every few years, said UHS Chancellor/UH President Arthur Smith. "It's better for the increases to go up a little every year ... than to build up," Smith said.
Although it may seem that UH stands to make money from the tuition increase, it is unsure whether or not UH's total budget will increase, said Executive Director of Budgets Beverly Ruffin.
"We are still in the process of preparing our budget," Ruffin said. "If we increase tuition and everything else (in the budget) stays the same, we do have more money.
"(Right now) we don't know that the increase in tuition will be an increase in our bottom-line budget. All the pieces are not in yet," Ruffin said.
Ruffin also said she would not know where the extra money would go until UH receives funding numbers from the state.
"There are a lot of pieces to our revenue ... that fund a variety of academic programs. Right now, it's difficult to answer that question (of where the money will go) specifically," Ruffin said.
Smith said the general fund is funded through state appropriations and tuition increases, which provide the university's operating budget. As costs of goods and services the university must buy increase, he said revenue sources must do the same.
"If the sources of revenue do not go up, we must react the same way a family does," Smith said. "We must cut back on the quality of life."
One way to help students cushion the impact of a tuition increase is to reflect the increase in financial-aid packages awarded, said Robert Sheridan, director of scholarships and financial aid at UH.
"When they schedule the increase, we will revise the tuition and fees part of (the financial-aid) budget," Sheridan said. "As much as we possibly can, we are making up the difference."
For example, Sheridan said, the maximum award amount a resident commuter living with parents could have received in the 1996-97 school year was $7,064. In 1997-98, the student would be eligible to receive $7,521.
"The primary difference (in the award amounts) is the $2-per-hour tuition increase," Sheridan said.
He added that the recent increase in maximum federal Pell Grant award to $2,700 from $2,470 should ease the effects of the increase.
"That makes up for a good part of that tuition and fee increase for those who are eligible for that Pell Grant," Sheridan said.
Other students may have to turn to loans, Sheridan said. "Many of them may have to end up borrowing loan dollars to cover the increase - it will be absorbed one way or another," he said.
Some students, like junior business major Juan Boza, said they could see both sides of the tuition-increase issue.
"I don't think it's enough (of an increase) to cause a big deal, but I can see how individuals who are not financially stable could be affected by this," Boza said.
Other students, including sophomore theater major Tracy Garcia, said they felt increases make finding money for tuition more difficult.
"I think it's pretty tough already," Garcia said. "I'm an independent student and I'm already trying to go to school and support myself. ... Any increase is difficult."
To address student concerns about the increase, UH-V will hold an open session in which students can pose questions to administrators, said Richard Phillips, UH-V associate vice president of enrollment management and student services.
When the increase proposal comes before the board, Chairman Eduardo Aguirre said it will probably be approved since it has been recommended by the board's Administration and Finance Committee.
Morian agreed, saying, "I feel pretty certain it will be voted (on) positively. I haven't heard anybody (on the board) in a negative (discussion) about it."