University administrators have decided to propose a 4 percent in-state tuition increase for summer session and the 2004-2005 school year.
The Board of Trustees will consider the proposal at its May 7 meeting, but for the first time, the public will have a chance to provide feedback first.
The Board of Trustees and senior leadership will hold a public meeting on April 8 to gauge opinion on the proposed hike and to outline the reasons for the increase.
The forum is slated for 4 to 6 p.m. in the Student Center Cardinal Hall.
"It's important to provide an understanding of what role student fees play in maintaining the quality of Ball State's academic programs," Acting President Beverly Pitts said Monday in a news release. "The forum will allow the trustees, who must approve tuition rates, to hear from the students and families Ball State serves."
The meeting and the 4 percent increase came at the request of Gov. Joe Kernan. Earlier this month Kernan sent a letter to each public university in the state asking them to cap tuition increases at 4 percent.
Kernan also requested that the universities give 30 days notice and hold a meeting to get public input before voting on an increase.
Heather Shupp, executive director of University Communications, said administrators decide on a tuition proposal by putting together a budget and projecting costs for the coming academic year.
"They set an increase that will allow them to maintain educational excellence," Shupp said.
Shupp said she did not know whether the proposed increase would have been higher without Kernan's request.
A 4 percent increase would raise in-state tuition to $4,713. Last year the university raised tuition 4.9 percent, increasing it from $4,320 to $4,532.
"We are sensitive to the need to keep tuition increases as moderate as possible," Pitts said in the news release, "yet we must continue offering a high-quality education that is also a sound long-term investment for our students."
In an e-mail to faculty and staff, Pitts said increasing costs are necessary to enable the university to increase salaries. She also said the funding allows the university to "recruit and retain outstanding faculty and staff."
Student Government Association President Ben Tietz said both students and administrators need to understand where the other side is coming from, but he said students will most likely be disappointed by the decision to raise tuition.
"I haven't heard a whole lot of student opinion on it yet," Tietz said. "Obviously students don't want a tuition increase."
Tietz said for the most part students understand the cost of education is rising.
"It's going to happen," he said. "It's not just Ball State that's raising tuition."
Tietz said after the public meeting he and his staff would try to find out exactly what students think of the increase and share that information with the administration.
"It's best for us to find out exactly what the concerns are of students," Tietz said, "and make sure (the administration) knows where students are coming from."
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