The University System of New Hampshire (USNH) is facing a multi-million dollar shortfall in this year’s budget. The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is facing a $15-20 million deficit while Keene State is sustaining a deficit of $1 million, according to a source knowledgeable of the faculty briefings.
This shortfall is on the heels of the upcoming biennial state budget for New Hampshire which has a projected four percent cut to USNH.
One of the largest increasing expenses for KSC, according to the breakdown of costs released by USNH, has been the price of food.
However, Nathalie Houder, vice president of finance and administration, said food prices should not be felt by students.
“I can’t imagine that students would know any difference because, in a way, we are going to incur those higher costs,” added Houder.
While students will not notice increased food prices on campus or increases to meal plan costs, there will be an increase in tuition as a result of the shortfall. The increase in tuition will be 2.5% for in-state and out-of-state students leading to an increase of roughly $300 and $600 per year respectively. Part of this increase in tuition is due to other incidental expenses such as “fringe” expenses that are part of daily operation, according to information from a source knowledgeable of faculty briefings.
“It’s [been] about six years [since] we’ve been able to increase it [tuition]. The cumulative impact of that is that we weren’t able to keep tuition consistent with the increases in costs,” said Houder regarding the college’s move on tuition.
Melinda Treadwell, president of KSC, added she believes in maintaining a “hard ceiling” on tuition increases as the college builds its new budget.
“The way we budget, we get a ceiling that we go up to. It doesn’t mean that an increase is a given,” said Treadwell.
She added, “For the past five years we’ve held in-state tuition flat in a market that’s moving around us. So I think part of what we’re saying is we might need to increase in-state and out-of-state tuition to try to hold against inflation and that’s not even inflationary. I would like us to not increase tuition at all.”
Senior Moses Fisher talked about his frustrations with the situation of higher education in N.H.
“I understand the school [KSC] is doing the best that it can given the circumstances, but I feel that tuition is already really high,” said Fisher. “I went here because it’s a budget school and it was the best choice for me. I got very lucky with my financial aid, but at the same time the school nickel-and-dimes us.”
Timothy Fitzpatrick can be contacted at
tfitzpatrick@kscequinox.com
