Higher costs for SIU students was the bottom line at Thursday’s Board of Trustees meeting.

Incoming SIUC students will pay higher tuition, fees and housing costs while also paying more for parking stickers, meters and fines.

The tuition, fees and housing cost increases are the result of a four-year plan SIU created to respond to a recommendation by the Illinois Board of Higher Education that public universities establish four-year tuition plans.

Advertisement

Fiscal years 1997 through 2000 are the first four years the plan is to be enacted at SIUC.

The plan will annually increase undergraduate and graduate SIUC tuition rates by $5 per semester credit hour.

Percent increases for the four years would be 6.2 percent in 1997, 5.9 in 1998, 5.6 percent in 1999 and 5.3 percent in 2000.

Molly D’Esposito, vice-chairman of the board, said the four-year plan presented is just a framework and subject to change.

The plan gives parents and students a chance to plan for the costs of education, she said. It is not set in stone.

The tuition and fee increases in the plan will be reconsidered by the board each year before they are adopted.

Donald Wilson, vice chancellor for financial affairs, said the board wants to provide prospective students and families with costs over any four-year period.

Advertisement*

Opposition to the four-year plan was voiced by SIUC’s Undergraduate Student Government, Graduate and Professional Student Council, student trustees from SIUC and SIUE and board member John Brewster.

Brewster said he was concerned SIU may lose students because of the continued increase in costs.

The continuing increase makes it more difficult for students to keep up with the costs for this institution, he said.

The board also passed parking sticker, parking meter and parking violation increases which received opposition from SIUC student trustee Jason Ervin.

We’re looking at a 200 percent increase in cost for a 10 percent increase in space, he said. Why can’t we wait and see how mass transit works.

Fall semester parking sticker fees will be $30 for students, $40 for faculty and staff who make less than $20,000 a year and $60 for faculty and staff who make more than $20,000 a year.

Also, fall semester metered parking prices will be 50 cents per hour and fines for violating metered parking regulations will be $4 instead of $2.

The money generated from the

see PLAN, page 5