By Adam Hartmann

Arizona Daily Wildcat

The Arizona Board of Regents voted 7-1 yesterday to raise resident tuition $50 and non-resident tuition $150 at the three state universities next year.

The increase means resident students at the University of Arizona, Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University will now pay $1,894 per year for tuition, while non-resident students at the UA and ASU will now pay $7,434. At NAU, non-resident students will pay $6,680.

This year's increase marks the second straight year that tuition at the three universities has gone up. Last April, the regents voted to increase resident tuition $250 and non-resident tuition $350.

At yesterday's meeting, UA President Manuel T. Pacheco proposed a $60 resident tuition increase with a $160 non-resident tuition increase, while ASU President Lattie Coor recommended $50-$60 and $150-$200 increases respectively

Pacheco said he made his recommendation with an eye toward improving instructional computing services, maintaining the Student Union and funding international study programs.

"We're cutting back on other areas in order to enhance some of these activities," Pacheco said.

Next year's increase would leave the UA about $200,000 short of his original recommendation, meaning the administration may not be able to fund all three things, Pacheco said.

Regents President Douglas Wall recommended an increase of $30 for residents and $150 for non-residents.

"I believe we have a strong responsibility to the residents of Arizona," Wall said. "If I could take it all out of out-of-state and nothing out of in-state, I'd do it."

Regent Rudy Campbell, who proposed the increase that eventually was adopted, said he made the proposal because it was roughly a 3-percent increase over current tuition rates, matching the 3-percent pay raise the state Legislature recently granted to the universities' faculty members.

Regent Andrew Hurwitz said the increase was about what he had expected.

"Those were the kinds of numbers I was thinking about before I came here," Hurwitz said.

But Tom Moring, an East Asian Studies senior and chairman of a task force for the Arizona Students' Association, a statewide student lobbying group, said he was upset by the increase.

"Nine people are going to decide how many kids never get a college degree," Moring said.

The board yesterday also voted to fund 40 percent of the student need created by this tuition increase, and continue setting aside 4.8 percent of the previous year's unmet student need, plus some extra.

Unmet need is defined as the financial need remaining after expected family contribution and gift aid have been subtracted from students' cost of attendance.

With the tuition increases, this year's set-aside is expected to total about $10.5 million. The board also voted to maintain the $8 Arizona Financial Aid Trust fee, which is included on tuition bills sent out to students.

Student Regent Spencer Insolia, the only board member to vote against the proposed tuition increase, recommended that the board pay all of the student need resulting from this tuition increase. Campbell had suggested maintaining 40 percent of unmet need.

"If we are increasing costs to each student, we have an obligation to cover it," Insolia said.

Patrick McWhortor, ASA's executive director, said he was unhappy that Pacheco and Coor made their recommendations right before the board voted on tuition.

"We wanted students to have more time to study the proposals," McWhortor said. "I hope that never happens again. Those things should be put on the table much earlier."

He also said he was concerned that the board voted to cover only 40 percent of the need that will result from this tuition increase.

"We are still refusing to recognize that newly-created need, which is need created by the Board of Regents, needs to be covered by the Board of Regents," McWhortor said. "They are basically saying, 'we don't care if there is an increase in unmet need.'"

But Hurwitz said he wanted to emphasize the minimal difference between Insolia's and Campbell's recommendations, about $30 per student.

"Let's tone down the rhetoric here," Hurwitz said. "We're not talking about throwing widows and orphans out into the street with (Campbell's) proposal."

The board voted to increase registration fees at the College of Medicine by $180, making the tuition $6,826 per year. It also voted to increase the registration fee at the UA and ASU law schools by $1,000 in addition to the regular tuition increase.

With the increase, resident law students will now pay $3,894 per year, while non-resident law students will pay $9,434.

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In other business, regents also voted to strengthen Arizona residency criteria and approved a plan to give state employees a 5-percent pay raise.

The new criteria will include a stronger consideration of a student's financial independence and will remove students' option to use personal testimony in an attempt to establish residency. The new guidelines are scheduled to take effect in the fall of 1995.

And under the approved plan, state employees would receive a 3-percent raise effective July 1, with an additional 2-percent raise going into effect April 1, 1995.

It also appointed a Regents' Commission on Student Costs and Financial Aid, to be chaired by Campbell. It will include the three university presidents, Hurwitz, Munger, Insolia, Regents' Executive Director Frank Besnette and the three student body presidents. Read Next Article