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First step taken to raise tuition

The UH System Board of Regents passed a proposal at a special meeting held Tuesday that will set the range tuition may be raised for Fall 2011, with the maximum at seven percent for undergraduate students and nine percent for graduate students.

Once the Texas Legislature determines how much state funding UH will receive, administrators will determine if a tuition increase is necessary.

If administrators decide to raise tuition, they will need the Regent’s approval.

“I have no intentions of coming to you and asking for seven percent,” UH President and System Chancellor Renu Khator told the board.

Khator said she wants to minimize any rise in tuition because students can’t afford it, and a tuition hike wouldn’t make enough of a difference in the budget shortfall.

The draft budget that passed through the Texas House earlier this month would cause the UH system to lose $975 in state funding per student annually.

Khator said if tuition were raised by the maximum seven percent, it would mean an increase of $440 per student annually, not enough to cover even half the discrepancy.

Vice President for Governmental Relations Grover Campbell was in Austin Tuesday working with the Texas Senate to help revise the draft budget that would cause the UH system to lose millions in state funding over the next two years.

Khator will also be in Austin this week in a bid to convince legislators that state funding is critical to the continued success of the University.

“Things are in flux,” Vice President for Administration and Finance Carl Carlucci said.

“At this point, we don’t know where the budget is going to stand.”

Khator said the UH system has already saved $21 million by improving operational efficiencies.

The administration is aiming to enhance revenue, consolidate certain units and increase productivity in an attempt to reduce the system’s dependence on state funding as much as possible.

Administration also is looking into what Khator called “workforce reshaping.”

The UH system has eliminated 136 staff positions over the last three years, and will determine if more reductions are necessary after the Legislature acts on a budget.

Khator said the administration is focused on maintaining the academic integrity of its programs to keep student trust.

Khator also said following the Board’s plan is essential to the continued success of the University.

Khator said there are currently more than 20,000 applications for 3,300 freshman spots.

Applications to the Honors College also are up eight times the rate from previous years.

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