Tuition for in-state UW-Milwaukee undergrads could increase by about $480 next year as the UW System pursues its first tuition increase in over a decade, UW System President Jay Rothman said Thursday.
Speaking at an informational hearing for the Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities, Rothman said he plans on asking the Board of Regents to approve a system-wide tuition increase of about 5% at the Regents’ next meeting.
The increase, which would be implemented for the 2023-24 school year, would not apply to room and board or other fees on students’ tuition bills. UWM’s annual tuition for a bachelor’s degree is currently $9,610—a 5% increase would make yearly tuition about $10,090.
Generating an estimated $38 million annually, the increase would offset some of the impacts of a state-imposed tuition freeze and recent inflation, according to Rothman, who said he was “extraordinarily sensitive” about college affordability.
“After more than a decade of frozen tuition rates and as costs have increased and more particularly in recent years, inflation has accelerated, it is essential that we seek this increase for the long-term financial viability of our universities and to sustain the quality of education and research and services that we provide,” Rothman said.
Republican lawmakers first froze the system’s tuition in the 2013-14 school year but lifted the freeze in 2021, over Gov. Tony Evers recommendation, according to state documents. This allowed the Board of Regents to raise tuition if they choose, though they haven’t increased tuition so far.
Currently, 88% of UWM’s operating budget is from tuition dollars, Chancellor Mark Mone said in a faculty town hall in November.
While students might appreciate the tuition freeze, it has contributed to the campus’s “daunting dilemma” financially, according to a 2021 report from the Wisconsin Policy Forum.
“Given the local economy’s need for innovation and for skilled workers such as nurses and programmers, UWM’s contributions are perhaps more important than ever,” the report says. “Yet its critical role is jeopardized by the university’s financial straits and its future contributions will depend heavily on decisions made at the state level as well as in response to the pandemic.”
According to Rothman, the UW System is the most affordable university system in the upper midwest, and a 5% increase would not change that. He said that the increase would allow the system to continue to provide the state with an educated workforce and attract or create jobs.
“This modest tuition increase will help our universities continue to provide students with a world-class education, produce the talent that Wisconsin’s workforce needs to succeed, and spark innovation and vitality in our communities,” Rothman said.
The Board of Regents’ next meeting, when Rothman will request the tuition increase, is set for March 30-31.
For an administration that clearly supports socialism, this seems like quite the capitalist decision.