“I know this is a significant issue,” said David Creamer, Miami’s vice president of finance and business. “But this reflects, unfortunately, the effects of the decrease in state support.”
If approved, tuition will be 6.5 percent higher than last year’s annual rate of $11,442 for in-state undergrads and $26,202 for out-of-staters. The increase is just below the 7 percent limit over two years the state has put into effect after two years of requiring colleges freeze tuition.
Creamer said state funding has fallen back down to the level it was at in 2001 for the Oxford campus, and the university anticipates that future funding from the state could be even lower.
Miami has a special committee making longterm plans on university finances through 2015.
“We’re concerned that there will be a major reduction in state support 12 months from now,” Creamer said.
Though no one at a subcommittee meeting Friday, June 11, voted against the full board of trustees deciding on the tuition increase, board member Jagdish Bhati did question at what point Miami becomes too expensive for students.
“Eventually we’ll get to that point ... we are going to be out of reach,” he said.
Creamer said it is difficult to save by making immediate cuts, since programs must stay intact until all students enrolled at the time have graduated. “Changes, especially on the academic side, cannot be made in a number of weeks,” Creamer said.
“Our intent is to propose changes the institution needs to make that reflect the environment we’re in,” he said.
Miami has seen a 10 percent increase in the number of students who say they will attend fall semester over last year.
Students living on campus also will see increases of between 2.25 percent and 3.47 percent for room and board, depending on the type of housing and meal plan.
Contact this reporter at (513) 523-4139 or mengle@coxohio.com.
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