The Tuition Review Advisory Committee held its first meeting Monday to start making recommendations for changes to tuition and fees for 2009 – 2010.

After the committee holds a series of meetings to take place throughout the fall semester, they will make a recommendation about how tuition and fees should change, if at all, according to Provost Larry Nielsen.

“Everybody participates sincerely in the process,” Nielsen said. “[The committee] works together on it. In the end, however, a decision to raise tuition or not raise it will leave some people unsatisfied.”

In Monday’s meeting, committee members discussed data about how tuition increases affect undergraduate and graduate students along with how much students need financial aid.

Julie Mallette, associate vice provost and director of Scholarships and Financial Aid, presented data to show how the Office of Financial Aid could use revenue from tuition increases.

Mallette said the Office of Financial Aid has seen an increase in requests for financial aid, something she attributed to both the increase in enrollment and the economy.

“It is critical to have the money available for student aid,” she said. “It makes a difference in students being able to enroll and not being able to enroll. Having grant aid dollars made available through the Campus Initiated Tuition Increases makes a big difference.”

Another consideration the committee made in its meeting was to consider the place N.C. State holds among a group of peer Universities that have comparable programs, enrollment and tuition rates, according to Nielsen.

Student Body President Jay Dawkins presented data about how tuition increases have not followed the trends in median family income during the last 25 to 30 years.

According to Dakwins, the median family income during the past decades does not justify raising tuition costs.

“The University will always welcome more money but somewhere along that line we have to balance what the University needs and what our students can afford,” he said.

According to the committee’s Web site, the job of the committee is to review the previous recommendation for a 6.5 percent tuition increase and make a recommendation for any changes to that rate and how to allocate funds from an increase.

“Obviously, it will be tough to not have any increase with inflation growing at the rate it is,” Dawkins said. “But at the same time, it’s unreasonable to think that some arbitrary number set by the Board of Governors would be the perfect fit for N.C. State.”

Student Senate President Greg Doucette, a voting member of the committee, did not attend the meeting but said he did not see the need for any increase.

“Between the University getting ample funding from North Carolina and the economy being what it is right now, I do not have much enthusiasm for an increase,” he said.

According to Dakwins, the University should get an increase in state appropriated funds because enrollment goals were reached for the past year.

Despite student disagreement with annual tuition increases, both Dawkins and Doucette agreed that a tuition increase would be likely for 2009-2010.

“The key is being realistic,” Dawkins said. “The best part about this committee is that they are willing to listen. That will go a long way in finding a reasonable solution for what fits our University’s needs and the needs of our students.”

Doucette said although deliberation within the committee could be productive, students on the committee will be outvoted by faculty.

“The truth of the matter is that people who want fee increaes have more voting power,” he said. “I would hope members would take a more global approach to this and think about how much money is needed versus what they want to get.”

Nielsen said he hoped students would look at a potential tuition increase more broadly.

“I would ask students to not react solely from the standpoint that it is going to cost more if we raise tuition and think about it in the context of what type of education they get from N.C. State,” he said.