BGSU board OKs series of fee increases, new housing

Hikes to generate $1.7M; tuition to remain frozen

5/10/2014

As Bowling Green State University’s spring semester came to a close Friday, the university’s Board of Trustees looked to the future, with construction projects, new programs, a capital campaign, and new fees for students.

The board approved a series of either new fees or increases of current fees that Chief Financial Officer Sheri Stoll said will raise about $1.7 million next year. The fees are in a variety of areas: Some, such as counseling and career development, will be administered to all students, though at varying levels, while others only apply to students who use a program, such as a learning community.

Usage of many of those programs has grown over the years, Ms. Stoll said, making the fees necessary. Some of the fees are on a scale based on what class a student is in. For instance, sophomores are charged $13 a semester for the counseling services, while freshmen are charged $8 a semester. That’s based on historical usage, Ms. Stoll said.

“We didn’t want to make it a fee-for-use,” she said.

The new and increased fees will cost students between $30 and $90 a year. Tuition and general fees for students will be frozen next year.

The board also voted to spend about $2 million for architectural design and pre-construction services for the replacement of Greek housing on campus. University administrators plan to ask for authorization in June for the demolition, site preparation, and utility relocation work of its current Greek housing.

New Greek housing will be built on Wooster Street, where the current structures are, requiring temporary housing for the organizations. The total project cost is projected to be about $30 million.

“If the Project is not approved, BGSU’s current Greek housing will continue to deteriorate rapidly, hindering growth of the University’s Greek program and having a negative impact on student participation in the Greek system,” a university document states.

A new Center for Forensic Science was approved by the board. The center won’t be an actual facility, but a program that will align with a Bureau of Criminal Investigation office the state has funded on campus.

Also approved was the initiative of a six-year capital campaign. University officials have previously said that key projects that could be funded would be a new business school, endowments for one or more colleges, and endowments for dozens of professorships and 1,000 student scholarships. The total campaign target is not yet determined, but the combined cost estimates of the individual projects could be more than $100 million.

Friday’s meeting was the last for board President Debra Ryan, whose term is at an end. Francis Voll, who was vice president, will take over as president.

Contact Nolan Rosenkrans at: nrosenkrans@theblade.com or 419-724-6086, or on Twitter @NolanRosenkrans.