On Dec. 11, UNC Wilmington’s (UNCW) Board of Trustees (BOT) held a virtual special meeting call to discuss tuition and fee-increase proposals. The board heard recommendations regarding tuition, fees and other student costs for the 2021-2022 school year. 

While there are no plans to increase tuition, the board was presented with two proposals regarding fee adjustments; Recreation Debt Fee – Repurpose Portion of Existing Fee and the Student Health Center Fee – Increase by $27.07. 

Miles Lackey, Vice-Chancellor of Business Affairs, presented the Campus-Initiated Tuition Increases (CITI) findings and proposals to the BOT.  

The two fee proposals were brought forth by the Student Government Association (SGA) through two resolutions. Their two requests were also posed to students through a CITI survey sent out in October.

Per a memorandum to the BOT, the Recreation Debt Fee – Repurpose of Portion of Existing Fee proposal would like to repurpose $52 of the $201 Recreation Debt Fee to go towards costs for phases I and II of the Recreation Fields and Facilities project.

“The $52.00 is available to be repurposed due (in large part) to considerable savings achieved through the refunding of recreation facilities debt in late 2019 and early 2020. Approval of this action item (BOT and BOG) would result in no net increase of the Recreation Debt Fee when comparing rates for FY21 to FY22 (the fee would remain $201 annually),” as written in the memorandum. 

The project will include a “multi-purpose natural turf field; a smaller flex field; basketball, sand volleyball and tennis courts; an outdoor gym/yoga area; and a building for SRC staff and storage.” Phase I is slated to be completed by Fall 2022 and will cost $9.75M.

A motion to approve this action item was brought to the floor and approved with a unanimous 11 I’s.  

Meanwhile, the Student Health Center Fee increase proposal asked the BOT to consider a fee increase of $27.07 (from $219.00 in FY21 to $246.07 in FY22).

“The additional revenue is being requested to address increased costs pertaining to salaries, benefits and medical supplies. Approval of this action item (BOT and BOG) would result in a 12.36% increase of the Student Health Center Fee when comparing rates for FY21 to FY22. However (should the fee increase be adopted), UNCW would continue to have the second most affordable Student Health Center Fee in the UNC System,” as written in the memorandum. 

Specifically, $14.63 of that increase would go “to replenish operating budget for past increases in personnel cost of $181,455, $8.11 for anticipated increases in benefits ($100,564) and $4.33 for increases in medical supply costs ($53,692).” 

A motion to approve this action item was brought to the floor and approved with 10 I’s.  

Following these proposals, Mr. Lackey shared the anticipated housing rates and meal plan rates for FY 2021-22. These rates for the housing rates are preliminary and not official.

The housing rates are anticipated to increase by 3% or $89 and the meal plan rates are anticipated to increase by 5% for All Access -Dining Hall Plus Three Plan All and 5.4% for All Access -Dining Hall Plus Six Plan. In addition, a new meal plan, All Access – Dining Hall Exclusive Plan, will be available at $1,750.00 for the FY 2021-2022. 

With these changes, the estimated cost of attendance for undergraduate resident living on campus with a meal plan for FY 2021-2022 would be $24,542.01. Or a change of $140.65 or .01% from FY 2020-2021. 

The next BOT meeting will take place on Jan 28 and 29.