Barbara Rotschild
"We are concerned about the burdens faced by our students and their families and Rutgers is working hard to contain costs, identify savings and to generate new sources of revenue," Rutgers University spokesman E.J. Miranda said Thursday. "But in the wake of significant reductions in state appropriations of higher education, an artificial tuition cap isn't appropriate either."
Miranda said Rutgers' 2010-11 budget has not been finalized and it has not been determined whether a tuition hike will be necessary. In-state undergraduates are paying $9,546 in tuition this year.
"The burden of funding higher education has clearly shifted from the state to students and their families," said Miranda, who added the state's investment per full-time Rutgers student in 2010 is $5,024, less than half of what it was in 1994 in today's dollars.
Tuition and fees at New Jersey's four-year schools average about $11,000, one of the highest public rates in the nation.
At Rowan University, the percentage of state funding has decreased from about 70 percent in 1990 to 25 percent in the coming year, spokesman Joseph Cardona said.
The university is facing a $15 million shortfall for 2010-11 including a 15 percent, $5 million cut in state aid; $6 million in state-negotiated staff salary increases; and $4 million in increased debt service.
Cardona was critical of a state-imposed tuition increase cap, saying it would take away decision making on a local level. Rowan last year imposed its own 3 percent cap on tuition increase for 2009-10, he said.
Before the governor's announcement, Rowan was looking at a 4 percent to 6 percent budget increase for next year, so it will probably come in at about 4 percent, Cardona said.
Rowan's current tuition for in-state undergraduates is $8,074 annually, but is boosted to $11,234 including student fees.
The university expects to meet its anticipated 2010-11 budget of about $200 million despite its shortfall with an infusion of $8 million in tuition from a spike in enrollment this year and next year. Rowan is able to admit more students while increasing classroom size by no more than one student, Cardona said.
In addition, Rowan is building on a model of making programs self-supporting, including the College of Continuing Education and summer school.
Burlington County College President Robert Messina called Christie's 4 percent tuition cap proposal unrealistic.
"Our tuition is at the low end for community colleges, about $86 per credit. A 4 percent hike would bring us to about $90. That wouldn't even cover our fixed costs," Messina said. He anticipates a tuition hike of about 9 percent or up to $10 per credit.
Still, Messina wants to keep a tuition hike as low as possible, although the college currently is only about 14 percent state-funded. Tuition accounts for about 63 percent of the budget, he said.
County colleges negotiate salary agreements with employees individually and are not subject to another proposal the governor reportedly considering for four-year state higher-learning institutions -- reopening union contracts to try to get salary concessions.
Unionized employees at the four-year schools deferred a 3.5 percent increase last year when former Gov. Jon S. Corzine reopened their contracts.
Messina said BCC is in the process of negotiating its contracts with unions and is understaffed with faculty after making cuts last year.
"We will have to increase staff for 2010-2011 even in the midst of this budget crunch," he said.
Camden County College officials said the school gets a relatively small percentage of its budget from state funding. In fiscal year 2010, 15.9 percent of the college's budget is funded through state aid, with 65.4 percent coming from student tuition and fees, 15.2 percent from the county and 3.5 percent from other sources.
But a tuition hike is anticipated
even though CCC won't be as affected by the proposed
state cuts as some other New Jersey institutions of
higher learning that depend more heavily on state funds.
"We do anticipate that the college trustees will be approving a small increase in tuition for the 2010-2011 term sometime in the next few months," CCC President Raymond Yannuzzi said.
Gloucester County College did not respond to phone inquiries on Thursday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. Reach Barbara S. Rothschild at (856) 486-2416 or barothschild@camden.gannett.com.
Source:
http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20100409/NEWS01/4090330