TUITION
Continued from Page 1
to access education is essential."
Only in the post-Meaauro 5
years has there tieen discussions
of alternative methods of financ
ing the state system, running
from the higher non-resident
tuition to charging more for pro
fessional schools, such as the
University law school and Ore
gon State University’s veterinary
school
"As we look at the economics
of our own business, if we go
into the 1995-97 biennium fac
ing the full impact of Measure 5.
we won't have enough money to
do what we're doing," Wilson
said. "We have to continue to
look at different ways of financ
ing the business."
Board member Bob Bailey
said the board is watching tho
impact of the currently imple
mented differential tuition pro
grams before it makes any
moves. He said, however, that
tho current discussions have
brought up many possibilities,
as well as problems.
One option is to let individual
schools charge mom than others
depending on their porceived
market value, ho said. For
instance, tho University could
charge more than Oregon State
University, which could charge
more than Portland State, if the
schools determined they could
attract students at higher prices.
Tiie major problem with that,
Bailey said, is it could present
an elitist onvironmont whore a
degree from Oregon State would
appear more valuable than that
of Southern Oregon State Col
lege
"It's a possibility." Bailey
said "At tho samo time, some
people may just want to pay
more for the collegiate experi
ence. If one school offers a full
college environment for a higher
cost, while another offers just
classes for less money, maybe
students should have that
option. The real question is: Do
we have different access points
with different costs?"
--— - >,y y.i-t-Mi ,n . i ' 11 ti ■ i i m Li I in 1 lUtiiu.
Resource fee may increase tuition
By River* Jansaan
Oregon C**r fjrmaU
University President Myles Brand has been
lobbying the state Board of Higher Education to
add an independent fee to students' tuition
bills.
Brand wants to charge students a $40-per
quarter "undergraduate resource fee." which he
said would be earmarked specifically for Fresh
man Interest Groups, student/profeasor
research projects, better faculty advising and
other programs that would Improve the student
experience at the University.
The fee would be unique to this school
unless another state institution made a similar
request.
Both Oregon State University and Portland
State University do charge engineering majors
an extra $100 per term, as other schools some
times do for professional programs, but neither
school charges the entire student body a
resource fee, as Brand is proposing.
Brand said he doesn't like increasing fees at
the University but said that if students want a
Sood education, they may have to pay a little
it extra for it.
“It's all about providing a higher-quality edu
cation in a fiscally constrained environment,"
he said.
To that end, the University is also working
on a productivity plan for the state chancellor's
office to be presented in the spring; ideally, it
would map out how the University can grow
and prosper while actually getting $10 million
peryeer less from the state from 1995-97.
The University already charges non-residents
more than other state schools and levies a
$2,750 resource fee on law students.
The $40 resource fee isn't a particularly con
troversial concept given the fact that tuition has
risen by about 50 percent at all state schools
since 1090's Ballot Measure 5 passed But it
does represent another step away from the idea
that all the state schools are cut from the same
cloth.
That's exactly what angera Dick Meyers,
president of Western Oregon State College. He
doesn’t want the University to charge more
than other date schools because he said it
would lead to distorted perceptions about the
quality of those institutions.
"It promotes the idea that because one school
costs more, it is a better school," Meyers said.
Although universities currently charge more
than colleges in Oregon, he said the quality of
his school is as high as any other, citing as evi
dence a number of newly recruited faculty
members and a high GPA among entering stu
dents.
"There are certainly advantages to charging
more," Meyers said. "And I know we could
charge more, but we don't want to. It's not good
for the state."
That's the concern most people have about
differential tuition — that it will restrict access
to the state system as a whole.
"The mission of Oregon schools is to educate
Oregon students." said Robert Nosse. executive
director of the Oregon Student Lobby. "That’s
why public schools exist — for those of us who
can’t afford to attend private schools tike
Willamette and Lewis and Clark.
"I’m not opposed to us marketing ourselves,
but that's not our mission," ha said.
But the reality for Brand is that differential
tuition already exists. He said it would be great
if all students in the state could pay the same
for their education, but in today's fiscal climate,
it's a myth.
Brand said the real issue is that the state
keeps cutting funding and raising tuition. A
$40 foe won't stop most students from attend
ing the University, especially if they know the
money will improve their educational experi
Brand said at least 10 percent to 20 percent of
the fee would be put into financial aid pro
grams to help students who can’t afford the
extra financial burden.
Another concern expressed by Nosse is that
although the increase may be low at first, it
could grow significantly within a few years.
Brand said he doesn't know whether that's a
possibility and said that the University will
have to wait a few years until he can evaluate
the fee's value.
In othtir words, can every Ore
gonian still got a college degree*
if several schools charge signifi
cantly more than others? The
access question is the one that
troubles all of the board mem
bers, who are worried simulta
neously about acquiring now
funding and providing higher
education for all Oregonians.
Wilson said tho state has to be
prepared to serve 80.000 Orego
nians in the future. It serves
00,000 now, and if Measure 5
wero to be fully implemented,
she said the state system would
only lie equipped to serve
45.000. Although the schools
could probably continue to
admit non-residents, sooner or
later those non-residents will
start Inking the place of resi
dents, Wilson said, which the
board dot»s not want
A second differential tuition
option is to make certain pro
grams more expensive than oth
ers. Bailey said Majoring in
engineering could cost more
than majoring in English
because engineering is a more
expensive major to offer, he
said
That. loo. is a controversial
option because it's feared that a
student will make a career
choice based on a financial deci
sion. such as majoring in Span
ish only because it’s an
affordable major, not because
it's what the student wants to
do.
Board member Bobby l-ee said
he also fears students may have
difficulty changing majors, espe
cially if they have to reapply for
financial aid every time they
transfer to a cheaper or more
expensive major.
"I'm concerned that this
whole policy might constrain
students in the field of studies
that they can afford, especially
in the undergraduate level," he
said.
Wilson agrees.
“The thought process is that
you don’t want students making
career choices based on finan
cial decisions," she said.
At issue, however, is not
whether differential tuition is
feasible — it's already been
implemented in a limited fash
ion — but whether students
would be getting added value
for paying more, she said.
For instance, certain classes or
programs may not be offered if
a school isn't allowed to charge
slightly more for them.
"We would want to look at
each case on its own merits,"
Wilson said. "We are open to
looking at differential tuition,
but each university and college
must present a solid case."
“We are at a crisis," Wilson
added. "Nothing is sacred.
Everything deserves a fresh
look."
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