Couldn’t make the Board of Trustees final meeting today? We’ve got you covered on the most important decisions and discussions the board faced today that will directly impact UNCW students.

 

Discussion of student tuition and fees for 2013-14 academic year

At the meeting Chancellor Gary Miller recommended a $238 increase for in-state undergraduate students. No surprise there, since it’s the same amount proposed before to go into effect next year. But official recommendations process is just beginning. The final decision will be made in December.

UNCW is also working on reducing student fees for next year, according to Mark Lanier, assistant to the Chancellor. By reducing the financing cost for student facilities and other debt service fees­ that are included in student fees, UNCW can lower student fees without cutting any programs.

It will be awhile before students see what the new prices are- the recommendations process for tuition and fees doesn’t officially begin until the next Board of Trustees meeting in December.

 

Increase in fundraising and budget to come

UNCW is planning to increase fundraising for university advancement by $500,000, now that the Board of Trustees has approved a:

·      5 percent fee on all non-endowment gifts to the university

·      1.25 percent administrative fee for endowment gifts

There is one condition though- the advancement staff must reexamine fees annually to ensure there is an increase in fundraising dollars.

The Board of Trustees is asking the UNC-system to expand their budget for:

·      State support: More students means more state aid is needed.

·      The Onslow Extension Site: To create an accelerated nursing program to help Jacksonville students earn a bachelor’s in nursing if they already have bachelor’s in another field.

·      Shellfish hatchery and aquaculture programs: To improve marine science and entrepreneurship at UNCW.

·      Analytics: To make programs lean and efficient, Lanier says, UNCW needs new ways to crunch numbers from university data.

 

Review of academic degree programs

UNCW’s academics will be undergoing review to determine which programs should stay, which need improvement, and which can go. Each decision is based on the university’s priorities and the particular program’s productivity.

As we saw last year with the physics and geology departments, some programs can even be combined. But the results won’t be available until spring semester. 

 

Tuition revenue shortfall projection has been corrected

The $3 million shortfall in tuition revenue projected for the current fiscal year has been eliminated, according to Dr. Rick Whitfield, the associate vice chancellor of business affairs-finance.

The low numbers were mostly due to “…an over-estimation of non-resident enrollment and a shift in enrollment, primarily non-resident and resident,” according to the Business Affairs Committee meeting report.

“Corrective action plans were implemented in fiscal year 2012 to address the projected revenue shortfall,” the report said.