Tuition and fee proposal for 2022-23

DATE:       February 28, 2022

TO:           University of Oregon Board of Trustees

FROM:      Michael H. Schill, President and Professor of Law

RE:            Academic Year 2022-23 Tuition and Fee Recommendation for March Consideration

 

Enclosed is my tuition and fee proposal for the 2022-23 academic year, which is based on the recommendations I received from the students, faculty, and staff who comprise the Tuition and Fee Advisory Board (TFAB). In making this decision, I reviewed the TFAB recommendations, accepted direct feedback from students and other stakeholders as part of a public forum held in person and virtually, reviewed feedback provided through an online survey, and discussed tuition issues with a wide variety of stakeholders.

Continuing Undergraduate Tuition - The Oregon Guarantee

The university is in the second year of the guaranteed tuition program, the Oregon Guarantee, which you, the Board of Trustees, approved in the spring of 2020 and which transformed the UO’s undergraduate tuition model. Under guaranteed tuition, the rate of tuition and administratively controlled mandatory fees for each new class of undergraduate students does not change for five years. As part of the transition plan for the new program, the Board also locked annual tuition and administratively controlled mandatory fee increases for undergraduate students who started prior to the summer of 2020 at 3 percent per year for a four-year period.

2022 Undergraduate Cohort Tuition

The undergraduate tuition rates that you will be considering only impact next year’s incoming class. For these incoming students, the 2022 Tuition Cohort of undergraduates, I support TFAB’s recommendation which is as follows:

  • Resident tuition: $278.05 per student credit hour (4.5 percent above the 2021 Tuition Cohort rate). Annual full-time tuition for new resident undergraduates will be locked at $12,512.25—for five cohort years.
  • Non-resident tuition: $870.17 per student credit hour (3.0 percent above the 2021 Tuition Cohort rate). Annual full-time tuition for new non-resident undergraduates will be $39,157.65—for five cohort years

As always, we will continue to support low-income Oregonians through the PathwavOregon scholarship and advising program, which ensure that qualifying Federal Pell Grant-eligible Oregonians pay no tuition or mandatory fees.

Graduate Tuition

I also support TFAB’s recommendation for graduate students which are as follows: With one exception, the schools and colleges have proposed increases that range from no increase to 3.1 percent, depending upon the program; the School of Law is recommending an increase of 5 percent (see the TFAB memo for details).

Erb Memorial Union Funding

One item addressed in the TFAB recommendation is a proposed agreement between the Associated Students of the University of Oregon (ASUO) and the University of Oregon that would transition funding for the Erb Memorial Union (EMU) from the Incidental Fee to the Student Union Fee.

I want to be clear, I support the ASUO decision making process, and I will defer to the ASUO on this issue. As stated in the TFAB memo, ASUO President Isaiah Boyd and Vice President for Student Life Kevin Marbury came to an agreement to address the fact that EMU funding obligations are requiring more and more of each year’s Incidental Fee increase to go to the EMU, which dramatically reduces funds for other ASUO programs and services. By moving the EMU to the Student Union Fee, a more moderate increase in the I-Fee nets more money for other ASUO programs and services. This agreement would require my support. As I have stated throughout tuition setting process, I am supportive of this approach.

However, during the tuition forum and subsequent discussions, it has become clear to me that there is disagreement among members of the ASUO about how to address the EMU funding issue via the fee structure. I currently have one proposal before me; however, I am willing to consider a new proposal regarding the EMU funding issue, should the ASUO president forward one. To ensure that the ASUO has additional time to consider this important matter, I have extended the deadline for submitting the final Incidental Fee Recommendation to 5:00 p.m., Thursday, March 10.

Administratively-controlled Mandatory Fees

I support the TFAB recommendations, which are based on the ASUO’s current incidental fee proposal, for the following administratively-controlled mandatory fee increases:

  • Incoming Cohort of Undergraduate students: Total adjusted administratively controlled mandatory fees: 3.74 percent higher than the 2021 Tuition Cohort rate, (see TFAB recommendation for specific breakdown)
  • Graduate Students: Total adjusted administratively-controlled mandatory fees: 3 percent increase

However, if the ASUO president forwards a different proposal to me by March 10, I will adjust my recommendations related to administratively-controlled mandatory fees appropriately.

In closing, I want to thank all the members of TFAB for their hard work and dedication. This proposal I am recommending to the Board of Trustees is the product of their time and effort, including nine open meetings, hours and hours of analysis, and work by a group of students, faculty members, and staff who care deeply about the UO and our ability to deliver quality, affordability, and accessibility.