UNLV students speak against tuition hikes

More than a dozen UNLV students spoke out against proposed tuition increases at a Friday Board of Regents meeting at the College of Southern Nevada.

The regents are scheduled to vote during their regular meeting in June, though student leaders asked the board to vote at their April 25 special meeting, rather than during summer break.

Mark Ciavola, president of student government at UNLV, said student leaders polled 812 students and found that 77 percent opposed the increase and 82 percent said it would cause them financial hardship.

Ciavola said he was vehemently against the increase and urged the board to look at other ways to generate money.

“Let us find a long-term solution to this problem and not price our students out of the very education that we claim they need to improve the state of Nevada,” he said.

If approved, undergraduate tuition at universities and community colleges in the state would increase 4 percent each year for four years, starting in fall 2015. University graduate tuition remains unchanged until fall 2017 when it would rise 2 percent for that school year and the next. Nevada State College would increase tuition by 2.5 percent the first year and 3.5 percent in following years.

Student presidents Umram Osambela from CSN and Deuvall Dorsey from Nevada State College supported the increase, as did three student government members from the University of Nevada, Reno, who joined the meeting by teleconference.

Other student presidents were opposed, dividing the Nevada Student Alliance.

“This is just the tip of the iceberg you see above the water,” Regent Robert Blakely said after hearing student concerns. “Obviously the iceberg is way bigger underwater.”

Blakely said the fee increase might cause students to withdraw or attend only part-time, reducing total dollars netted by the system.

Regents Allison Stephens and Regent Ron Knecht also opposed the increases.

“The bottom line is that, for some students, every single dollar counts, and there are students who are priced out in other states as well,” Stephens said.

Tuition and registration fees are usually set two years in advance by the Board of Regents and that amount is used to determine estimated revenues for the next biennial budget. The four-year plan aims to create predictability in pricing.

The Board of Regents voted Friday to adopt predictive pricing, which states that once approved, fees and out-of-state tuition can’t be changed except in “emergency situations or extreme economic circumstances.”

The board also voted to scratch from its policy a provision that says NSC registration fees will be set at the midpoint between specified university and community college fees.

University undergraduates currently pay $191.50 per credit. If the tuition and fee increase is approved, they will pay $224 per credit for the 2018-2019 school year. University graduate students would pay $10.75 more per credit by 2018. Community college lower-division credits would increase from $84.50 per credit to $98.75 per credit in 2018.

Contact reporter Kristy Totten at ktotten@reviewjournal.com or at 702-477-3809. Follow her on Twitter @kristy_tea.