Board of Regents sets tuition rates for the 2015-16 school year

The University of Colorado Board of Regents Monday morning voted 8-1 to approve a resident tuition increase of 2.9 percent at CU-Boulder, the lowest for resident student tuition approved by the board since 2006, when it raised tuition 2.51 percent for residents.

Non-resident undergraduate students will see a 3.0% increase, and international undergraduate students a 3.1% increase.

The Regents heard the tuition presentation from CU Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Todd Saliman and entertained a lengthy discussion on related topics, including the structure and purpose of differential tuition for CU-Boulder’s colleges and schools, investment into merit-based and need-based scholarships, and the future of tuition and budget planning amid the unpredictability of the state’s economy and finances.

“We can’t accurately predict what the future holds in terms of the state’s economy and state funding,” said Saliman. “We’d like to keep tuition as low as possible. The chancellors’ commitment is to keep tuition as low as possible.”

Board members reiterated appreciation for increased support from the State of Colorado, saying it enabled the campus to keep tuition increases to a minimum.

Regent Sue Sharkey said that that with the vote to approve tuition, the university is sending a clear message to the state legislature.

“One of the reasons this is happening is due to the strong support from the State Legislature to higher education. The university is working hard to keep tuition down in response to their work,” Sharkey said.

“With three percent, I don’t know of anything except the price of gas that’s lower. I’m comfortable with where our campuses have come in (with their budget requests),” said Regent Glen Gallegos of Grand Junction.

Regent John Carson, who represents the 6th Congressional District, said his constituents were mainly concerned about tuition increases. He said his main issue on tuition is ensuring accessibility to a CU degree for middle-class families.

“I gather from the materials that the plan in the out years is to hold to a steady three percent cap? Is this just going to be a one-year-at-a-time endeavor, or are we going to set meaningful caps on where tuition is going to go? Even though three percent is lower than some other institutions, it’s still too high for me,” Carson said.

The board also voted 8-1 to approve an increase undergraduate student fees by $154 at CU-Boulder. These fees include course and instruction fees, housing and dining service fees and student activity fees.

The board also voted 9-0 to approve a three percent salary increase pool for classified staff (a one percent cost of living and 2 percent merit increase) and a three percent salary increase pool for faculty and exempt staff.