Jessi Rae Morton
News Editor
The UNCG Tuition and Fees Committee has proposed changes that will primarily affect graduate students and out-of-state undergraduate students. On Monday, Nov. 7, the committee held an in-person forum in the Elliott University Center Auditorium “to provide students with the opportunity to engage and ask questions regarding the proposed tuition and fee changes,” according to Graduate Student Association Student Relations Chair Ashley Loper-Nowak. These proposed changes include a 3% tuition increase for in-state graduate students and all out-of-state students–both graduate and undergraduate–as well as fee increases that will affect all students regardless of residency.
The UNC Greensboro Tuition and Fees Committee consists of six students, three faculty members and three staff. Their recommendations must be approved by the Chancellor’s office and the University Board of Trustees before going on to the university system’s Board of Governors for approval in early 2023. If approved at all levels, the proposed changes would go into effect for the 2023-2024 academic year. These recommendations have been developed in line with restrictions set by the Board of Governors; those guidelines stipulate that tuition for in-state undergraduate students must not be increased at this time.
The voting members of the University of North Carolina System’s Board of Governors are elected by the North Carolina State Legislature. In early 2022, the system office approved a new funding model for all schools in the system. In a January 18, 2022, Board of Governors meeting, the funding model was reviewed, and the materials provided at that time make clear that “nonresident tuition should fully cover costs.” The funding model was approved at the April 7 meeting of the Board of Governors. Entire meetings can be viewed via a PBS archive of live streamed Board of Governors meetings.
The new funding model changes the way that state funds are distributed to universities. Under the new funding model, universities do not receive North Carolina state appropriations for any out-of-state students. Instead, student credit hours completed by in-state students are used to determine state appropriations. Additionally, “a portion of the generated funding request is based on university outcomes related to strategic goals of the System and the State of North Carolina.” Illustrative examples provided at the Jan. 18, 2022, Board of Governors meeting suggest that this new funding model may help schools with improving performance but declining enrollments. However, the performance-based component of the new funding model has not yet been finalized.
UNC Greensboro has not had any tuition increases since 2018 and is facing the change in state appropriations, the challenge of decreasing enrollments and the continued concern of inflation in the larger economy. While no student wants to see a tuition increase, the committee has made it their goal to keep their recommendation measured and reasonable. They reported at the forum that other schools in the system are recommending tuition increases in a similar range (of 2% to 5%), so UNC Greensboro’s suggested increase is in line with others in the system. While the Board of Governors has extended the freeze on tuition increases for resident undergraduate students, as mentioned above, non-resident students and graduate students are not protected by that freeze.
The UNCG Tuition and Fees Committee’s recommended increase will result in an $88 per year increase in student fees for all students regardless of residency, but out-of-state students will face the largest tuition increases. Out-of-state undergraduates will pay $587 more per year, and out-of-state graduate students will pay $568 more per year. These numbers are based on two semesters of full-time enrollment. These increases would bring the cost of attendance for out-of-state undergraduates up to about $23,214 per year ($11,607 per semester), not including housing. Increases will not be finalized until they are approved by the Board of Governors, and, even if approved, they will not go into effect until Fall 2023.
More detailed information about current tuition and fees at UNC Greensboro can be found on the Spartan Central Tuition and Fees webpage, where there is also a breakdown of how tuition funds are used. Updates to 2023-2024 tuition and fees are forthcoming as the UNCG Tuition and Fees Committee recommendations make their way through the approval process.
THE CAROLINIAN 
thanks for reporting on this!
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