YSU room and board fees frozen for next year

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

Youngstown State University will freeze room and board fees for the next academic year, ensuring that YSU will remain the least-expensive Ohio public university campus for student housing.

“By freezing our room and meal- plan fees, YSU will continue to be the most-affordable campus in the state and across the region for students to live and learn,” said Eddie Howard, YSU associate vice president for student experience.

The room-and-board fees for YSU residence halls will remain $8,990 for next academic year. That’s the lowest cost among Ohio’s comprehensive, four-year public universities. By comparison, annual fees are $11,626 at the University of Akron and $11,014 at Kent State University.

Danielle Meyer, director of YSU housing and residence life, said it’s the first time in recent memory the university has frozen room and board fees.

“The overall goal is twofold,” she said. “We want to provide students with the most affordable option for on-campus living.”

Students often talk about the expense of living on campus, Meyer said. University officials want to keep rates as low as possible to offer on-campus living to those who couldn’t otherwise afford it.

New options for student housing are being constructed adjacent to campus, and YSU wants to remain competitive with them, she said.

This semester, YSU turned around what had been 15 semesters of declining enrollment. The university reported 12,361 students enrolled for spring semester, up 0.33 percent or 41 students from spring 2015 semester’s 12,320 students.

It was the first semester-to-semester increase since 2011, and university officials expect that upward trend to continue.

“Keeping tuition and housing affordable is part of our commitment to help students succeed, graduate on time, with a job and with little or no debt,” YSU President Jim Tressel said.

The university’s five residence halls house nearly 870 students. The university also owns the Courtyard Apartments on the east side of campus, with 408 beds. Pending action by YSU trustees later this month, rent for the Courtyard Apartments also will be frozen for next academic year: $780 a month for a one bedroom, $660 a month for a two-bedroom, and $570 a month for a four-bedroom.

In addition to university- owned housing, several private-housing options are available to students, including the 112-bed Flats at Wick.

Also, Hallmark Campus Communities plans to open for the start of this fall semester a 162-bed apartment building along Rayen Avenue between Fifth and Belmont avenues. Plans also are in the works for another private apartment complex on Wick Avenue, between Lincoln and Rayen avenues.