University News
BOT Approves All-Costs Increases
June 3, 2011
MACOMB/MOLINE, IL -- The Western Illinois University Board of Trustees approved a 4.6 percent increase in all-costs (tuition, fees and room and board) for undergraduate students entering the WIU-Macomb campus in Fall 2011 at the board's meeting today (June 3) at the WIU-Quad Cities 60th Street Campus. Tuition, fees and room and board are guaranteed for four years, so students entering in Fall 2011 will not see any change in their total costs during their enrollment. The all-costs increase averages approximately 1.15 percent per year. Last year's all-costs increase was 6.2 percent.
Undergraduate students entering Western's Macomb campus in Fall 2011 will be charged $7,648.50 in annual tuition, based on 15 hours per semester at a $254.95 per-semester-hour rate ($14.30 more than the Fall 2010 tuition rate of $240.65 per semester hour). The tuition rate is $225.96 per semester hour for students who entered in Fall 2009 and $215.20 per semester hour for students who entered in Fall 2008. Graduate tuition for students entering in Fall 2011 will be $6,747.84, based on 24 semester credit hours per year ($281.16 per credit hour compared to $265.40 in Fall 2010).
Yearly room and board increases for entering students will be $322 more per year for double occupancy ($8,460 compared to $8,138 for Fall 2010) and $413 more per year for single occupancy ($10,782 compared to $10,369 for Fall 2010). Fees for incoming Western-Macomb students will increase by $61.80 per year for students with a 15-hour schedule per semester ($2,331.90 per year beginning Fall 2011, compared to $2,270.10 per year in Fall 2010 and $2,178.60 in Fall 2009).
Quad Cities undergraduate students will see an all-costs increase of 6.3 percent. Undergraduate students entering Western's Quad Cities campus in Fall 2011 will be charged $7,648.50 in annual tuition, based on 15 hours per semester at a $254.95 per-semester-hour rate ($14.30 more than the Fall 2010 tuition rate of $240.65 per semester hour). Graduate tuition for WIU-QC students entering in Fall 2011 will be $6,747.84, based on 24 semester credit hours per year. The fee schedule for new WIU-Quad Cities undergraduate students with a 15-hour schedule per semester will increase by $62.10 per year ($597 per year in Fall 2011, compared to $534.90 in Fall 2010, 2009 and 2008).
In 1999 Western established a University Cost Guarantee program in which students entering Western are guaranteed they will pay the same rate for tuition, fees and on-campus room and board for their four years of continuous enrollment. Western's Cost Guarantee is the only public university program in Illinois that provides no increases in room and board, in addition to the Illinois statutory requirement of guaranteed four-year tuition rates. Western Illinois also offers the Cost Guarantee to graduate students enrolled in a degree program, as well as to transfer students earning an associate's degree. Those students who transfer to WIU the following semester upon completing their associate's degree will receive the previous year's Cost Guarantee rates.
"Despite the economic uncertainty we are facing due to the state's fiscal crisis, it remains our commitment and our responsibility to our students to provide affordability and access. It always is our mission to keep any increase as low as possible in order to provide affordable academic opportunities to our students," said WIU President Al Goldfarb. "We are one of the few public institutions in the state that provides undergraduate tuition and fees for under $10,000 per year, and we remain the only university in the state to include room and board in our cost guarantee."
In addition, the board approved a 12 percent increase for student health insurance fees, from $659.28 per year to $738.38 per year. The student health insurance fees did not increase in Fall 2010 ($659.28 per year).
Western's board also approved the purchase of a learning management system for online courses (Desire2Learn of Baltimore, MD, $1.2 million); revisions to the Certificates of Participation (COPS) projects, including roof replacements, electrical upgrades, building repairs, heating/cooling upgrades, removal of existing coal stack on the heating plant and decommissioning various coal support systems; amendments to the 403(b) supplemental retirement plan that allows for discretionary employer contributions; and the University's FY'12 preliminary spending plan.
In other business, the board also approved positive tenure recommendations for 29 faculty members; appointed Julie DeWees as interim BOT treasurer; and recognized President Al Goldfarb, Vice President for Student Services Garry Johnson and Vice President for Administrative Services Jackie Thompson, all of whom are retiring at the end of this month, for their service to Western Illinois University. The election of BOT officers for the 2011-2012 year was tabled until the Sept. 30 meeting.
The WIU Board of Trustees will hold a retreat July 7 at WIU's Horn Field Campus in Macomb. The next regularly scheduled meeting will be held Sept. 30 on the WIU-Macomb campus.
Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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