PENNSYLVANIA University system delays tuition vote

The governor hopes to use a windfall of federal money to restore program cuts.
HARRISBURG (AP) -- The governing board of Pennsylvania's 14 state-owned universities postponed setting tuition rates for the 2003-2004 school year until Gov. Ed Rendell and the Legislature have agreed on an education funding plan.
System officials have been lobbying the administration to restore a 5 percent reduction in state funding in the current budget, which was passed by the Legislature and signed by the governor in March. Rendell vetoed more than $4 billion in basic education funding to force negotiations over funding for K-12 schools.
"We have legislators, including members of this board, who are working very hard to help us restore that [money]. We're very optimistic that's going to happen," Chancellor Judy G. Hample said Thursday.
Delay sought
The board traditionally sets tuition rates at its July meeting, but Christine Olson, chairwoman of its finance, administration and facilities committee, said Rendell's office had asked for a delay until the education funding negotiations are completed.
Last fall, the state system sought a 4.5 percent increase in its appropriation for the fiscal year that began July 1 and also proposed boosting tuition by 4.5 percent to balance its $1.1 billion budget.
In response to the funding cut, Hample recommended that the board raise tuition 5 percent -- an increase of $220 for resident undergraduate students -- and asked the universities to reduce their spending by a combined $40 million. The board did not discuss those recommendations Thursday.
Rendell's spokeswoman, Kate Philips, said the governor hopes to use a portion of a $900 million federal windfall to restore a range of program cuts, including state university funding. "Those are part of the ongoing negotiations, and no restorations have been announced at this point," she said.
Facing a deadline
The board would need to set new tuition rates by Aug. 1 so the universities can mail out their tuition bills on time, Hample said.
"We've already alerted parents and students that there may be a slight tuition increase, and the reaction has not been negative," Shippensburg University President Anthony Ceddia said. "If the delay is a few days, we can still get the bills out on time."
If the delay is longer, the university would likely send out bills based on the current tuition rate, followed by a supplemental bill reflecting any increase approved by the board, he said.
Student representatives on the board said they understood that some kind of tuition increase was needed to make up for the state funding cut, but they said year-to-year increases add up significantly over a student's college career.
The overall picture
Since the 1999-2000 school year, tuition has risen by 21 percent, said Brandon Danz, a Millersville University senior. "As a board, we have a tendency to look at tuition increases from year to year, not realizing that students look at it over the course of their education," Danz. "I'm paying $980 more to go to Millersville this year than in the year I started college."
Rendell also proposed a 5 percent state funding cut for Pennsylvania's four state-related universities -- Penn State, Lincoln, Temple and the University of Pittsburgh. Penn State's board of trustees is expected to vote on tuition rates today.
The state system comprises Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester universities.