BOWLING GREEN -- With state funding to higher education continuing its decline, students at Bowling Green State University again will be asked to help make up the difference.
Full-time undergraduates will pay approximately $175 more in tuition and fees each semester beginning this fall -- a total of $5,188 per semester for in-state students compared to $5,014 this past year.
The trustees on Thursday approved a 3.5 percent increase in tuition and fees for undergraduates -- the maximum increase allowed by the state budget for public colleges and universities. University of Toledo trustees approved the same increase on Monday.
"Our students are our No. 1 priority and what we want to do is provide them a quality education while they're here at BGSU, and we'll do everything we can to keep our costs down and raise tuition the least amount as possible as we go forward," BGSU President Mary Ellen Mazey said after the meeting. "It's all about the students."
Public universities have seen a dramatic decline in funding known as state share of instruction in the last few decades. The result has been higher tuition costs for students.
"When you have a decline in state support, we have to find some way to cover those costs," Ms. Mazey said.
Sheri Stoll, chief financial officer and vice president for finance and administration, said BGSU expects to receive $67.2 million in state funding next year, about $2.8 million less than it received this year. She told the trustees the 2013 figure represents a 25.5 percent or $23 million drop in state support since 2010.
The trustees adopted a $283.5 million budget for the main campus and $14.6 million for the Firelands campus near Huron. The budget includes $978,784 for anticipated changes in compensation and benefits for faculty and staff that are yet to be determined.
The university is negotiating its first contract with its new faculty union -- something they had hoped to complete by July 1. Ms. Mazey said the two sides have not even begun to talk about economic issues so the actual cost of potential faculty raises is unknown at this time.
Also Thursday, the trustees approved spending $819,563 to have an architecture/engineering team and construction manager design a proposed $11 million overhaul of the Student Recreation Center.
The project could include a new entrance, an expanded mezzanine for additional cardio training, and new gym flooring, among other improvements.
Ms. Stoll said that when the rec center opened in 1979, it was state-of-the-art, but very few updates have been done since, other than upgrading air conditioning and replacing the pool filtration systems about 11 years ago.
BGSU has been on a campaign to build facilities and bring its old ones up to date in an effort to attract and retain more students.
"For most of you who have or know young people 18, 19 years old you probably recognize the importance of a recreation center when they're considering a university that they might be interested in attending," Ms. Stoll said.
In other action, trustees:
Approved creation of a post-baccalaureate certificate and a master of education degree in teacher education for people with bachelor's degrees in nonteaching fields who want to become licensed to teach in Ohio.
Appointed Venu Dasigi, the new chairman of the department of computer science, full professor status with tenure. He currently is chairman of the department of computer science and software engineering at Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, Ga.
Granted Linda Petrosino dean emeritus status in the college of health and human services. She is retiring June 30 after 25 years with BGSU and 10 years as dean.
Agreed to appoint up to three nonvoting "national trustees" to the board. They would likely be "alumni and friends" of BGSU who live outside Ohio and otherwise could not serve on the board, Trustee Megan Newlove said.
Contact Jennifer Feehan at: jfeehan@theblade.com or 419-724-6129.
First Published June 22, 2012, 4:00 a.m.
