SOU tuition hike falls in the 'middle of the pack'

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ASHLAND — Southern Oregon University students will face a 3.1 percent jump in tuition this fall — but since state universities are now folding student fees into tuition, it will register as a 4.3 percent hike.

As it does every June, the State Board of Higher Education set tuition costs, reaching its Legislature-mandated goal of not exceeding the annual increase in median family income, Di Saunders, Oregon University System spokeswoman, said Friday after the board's two-day meeting in La Grande.

The act of combining fees and tuition was requested by the Oregon Student Association, so that all costs would be transparent and students could know the full "sticker price" as they prepared their budgets and financial aid applications, Saunders said.

"Everyone was pleased," she added, to keep the hikes in line with cost-of-living and income rise. SOU's increase was in the middle of the pack, which ranged from 2.8 percent at Eastern Oregon University to 5.2 percent at Western Oregon University.

SOU annual costs for a full academic load, including fees, in the just-ending 2007-2008 year were $5,502. For next school year, that will rise to $5,739.

Saunders said, "It's a fairly low increase and was very much supported by the Oregon Student Association."

She said a freeze in tuition for SOU may be proposed for fall 2009, to help sharpen its competitive edge in the nation.

SOU lost several hundred students after deep cuts in recent years, said Jonathan Eldridge, vice president for student affairs.

"We've recovered from what that did to our enrollment "¦ and we've been careful in our budgeting to have the minimum increases," he said.

The school is grappling with rapidly rising fuel and food costs and trying to stay competitive with its salary and benefit packages, said Eldridge, noting that the SOU administration may have to increase meal prices in fall 2009 but will try to keep tuition hikes to the same level as this year.

The state pays 17 percent of higher education costs, while students pay 26 percent, with the rest coming from federal grants, food, housing, athletics and other services, said Saunders. Oregon is 45th among the 50 states for support of higher education.

SOU President Mary Cullinan was flying back from the state board meeting and was not available for comment.

More information on tuition and fees is available at www.ous.edu/state_board/meeting.

John Darling is a freelance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at jdarling@jeffnet.org.

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