The Facts: The N.C . State Board of Trustees is meeting this morning at 9 a.m . at the Park Alumni Center to discuss tuition increases. The proposed plan could increase tuition by $649 next year and by 2016 the increase will be $873.
Our Opinion: Many students were first notified Thursday afternoon about the vote. With the vote Friday, this is not enough time for student voices to be heard. On an issue that affects every single student at N.C . State there is no excuse for a discussion not taking place.
We live in a world where you cannot succeed if you do not go to college, but, at the same time, it is also becoming a world where you cannot live if you do go to college. Strapped with the outstanding debt of $1 trillion and an economy in shambles, students will be paying for their college long after they leave. And now tuition and fees may be raised again.
100.2 percent: this is not the increase in the quality of our education over the past 10 years, our inflation rate, nor is it the increase in earnings expected from a college degree – it is our tuition increase over the past decade. Over the past 10 years, tuition at N.C . State has increased from $3,228 to $6,529, and the University is not stopping there.
The N.C . State Board of Trustees is meeting this morning at 9 a.m . at the Park Alumni Center, to discuss further increases. The N.C . State Board of Trustees will be voting on proposed tuition increases of 6.5 percent for this year and an additional “Catch-Up” increase of $234 every year for the next five years. Tuition could go up $649 next year and total tuition could be $10,707 by 2016-2017, an increase of 331 percent.
Many of you will be reading this long after the vote has been cast this morning; however, if you feel guilty about your inaction, it is not your fault. The Student Senate members were notified about the new proposed increases Thursday around 8 a.m . Chandler Thompson, student body president, notified the Student Body via email about the vote Thursday. There is no way to draw out the student voice in a day or two.
On an issue that affects every single student at N.C . State there is no excuse for a discussion not to take place. A statement by Chancellor Randy Woodson about the general improvements that are possible with the tuition increase does not absolve the administration from a discussion.
The students are the foundation of the University. We are the reason it exists. We do not enroll lightly; it is a life decision. We give four or more years of our life in the pursuit of a degree that gradually is opening fewer doors. We give our life savings and put ourselves into debt for the University. Before we implement another change, before we have to sacrifice even more, it would be nice for someone to talk to us.
