Enrollment jump at YSU presents fiscal challenges

Two days after Youngstown State University officials announced that the fall enrollment would top 15,000 students, the Finance and Facilities Committee of the board of trustees voted to recommend a tuition increase of 3.5 percent for graduate and undergraduate students. That recommendation was adopted this past Friday by the board.

Why the increase — the cost of room and board is also going up — when the largest enrollment in 17 years is expected to generate $2.6 million in new tuition revenue? Because the new state formula rewards universities with funding based on retention and graduation rates rather than just the number of full-time students on campus.

Meeting these new demands is a challenge for an open-admission, urban institution like Youngstown State.

It could be argued that having high enrollment numbers isn’t all that beneficial because the cost of providing these students with an education and other services surpasses the revenue generated by them. YSU has long argued that one of its selling points is its low tuition rates compared with the other higher education entities.

Even with the additional $324 a year that graduate students will be paying, and the $243 more that undergraduates who are Ohio residents will be shelling out, YSU will still have the third lowest tuition of Ohio’s 13 universities and colleges.

The tuition increases, along with new fees for some upperclassmen, are expected to generate $4.2 million next year.

The challenge ahead

If the 15,058 enrollment number holds up when the fall semester begins — the enrollment in the fall 2009 was 14,682 — the new president of YSU, Dr. Cynthia Anderson, will have the task of making sure that the retention and graduation rates are such that the university can get the maximum funding from the state.

Ohio’s budget crisis — things are expected to get even worse next year — has meant a cut in higher education allocations from the General Assembly. As a result, the 13 institutions have had to settle for less money from the Ohio Board of Regents.

And while tuition increases have become necessary, the financial breaking point for students is fast approaching.

Dr. Anderson, who will take over from President David Sweet on July 1, has been with Youngstown State for more than 30 years and most recently served as vice president for student affairs.

It is not unfair to expect that under her leadership, YSU’s retention and graduate numbers will soar — given her long involvement with campus issues.