The University of Oregon is considering a tuition increase. The Board of Trustees is expected to vote on the proposal this week.

The proposal is to boost tuition by 4.76 percent for in-state students and 4.46 percent for those from out of state. Student leaders are objecting to the move saying the cost of a U of O education is already high and this adds an additional burden. Amy Scheck is with the Associated Students of the U of O. She points out President Michael Schill has repeatedly said he wants to make the University more accessible.

Schenk: “So it’s really interesting to see the play between those two areas of, we want a lot of students to come here, we want a more diverse and more representative community here at the U of O. But I believe, personally, it’s tough to do that if you’re going to increase tuition. You’re gonna price a lot of students out.”

U of O Provost and Vice President Scott Coltrane says he understands a tuition boost puts an additional burden on students.

Coltrane: “And the reason we’re doing that is to serve the students better. Costs of education are going up. The kinds of services that we provide to our students and the instruction cost more and we’re having to raise our tuition in order to meet the things that we provide to students.”

Coltrane says the U of O costs less than other universities of comparable size. Meanwhile the state has cut its contribution to higher ed. The U of O has come to rely more on the higher tuition from out of state and international students.

Students plan to be at the Board of Trustees meetings Thursday and Friday and urge them to either reduce the amount of the tuition increase or postpone it.

