Overall, the rate for room and board will rise to $9,154 in the 2014-15 year. The board approved the hike unanimously and with no public comment.
Residential and Hospitality Services Vice President for Auxiliary Enterprises Vennie Gore said during the meeting one of the main reasons for the increase was a concern about pork, beef and corn scarcity following a recent drought in the West.
“Food will be a very volatile cost this year,” Gore said.
Although no fee increase was applied to Spartan Village, the board voted to increase the cost of living at University Village by 2.2 percent.
This is the first increase the apartment complex has had in three years, Gore said. The new rate at University Village will total $705 per person per month for a four-bedroom apartment.
The decision to raise room and board fees came just one day after MSU Students United petitioned the trustees to place a freeze on all tuition.
After being presented with the petition, which had more than 3,000 signatures, Board of Trustees Chairman Joel Ferguson maintained that he would continue to do what was best for MSU. He said the uni versity is always striving to achieve “more with less.”
The Board of Trustees will likely vote on tuition increases this June. The board approved a pro forma increase of 3 percent to upper and lower division tuition at the last Faculty Senate meeting of the semester on April 15.
Gov. Rick Snyder recommended a 6.1 percent increase to state funding earlier this year with a stipulation that required universities to cap tuition increases at 3.2 percent. If the board votes to raise tuition by 3 percent, students would pay $385.88 more a year.
Ferguson said higher state funding does not always mean MSU will receive the same funding as other state institutions.
“Last night I received a phone call from The State News and they wanted me to comment about students who were going to picket our meeting ... about tuition and I can’t help myself, but I couldn’t laugh candid,” Ferguson said. “I said if they think they’re going to go out and demonstrate and help try to keep tuition down, they’re in the right county, but they’re in the wrong building. They should be at the state Capitol.”
Members of MSU Students United took offense to Ferguson’s remark, saying he was not being sensitive to relevant student concerns.
“I think it’s disappointing and disgraceful and shows how much admin are out of touch with what student issues really are,” political theory and constitutional democracy sophomore Andrew Gibson said. “Tuition goes up every year, and becomes less accessible to students of different backgrounds.
“For him to say our efforts are laughable while he does nothing, it’s disappointing to be sure.”
Many MSU Students United members attended the meeting to speak out against the room and board hike.
“On-campus living expenses ar e, especially for freshmen, just an extension of tuition because (students) don’t really have a choice,” philosophy senior Spencer Perrenoud said. “So that’s an excellent way for the university to continue extorting money from any place they can from the students.”
Gore said with the room and board hike, he would be focusing on how the university can provide a better on campus experience with engagement centers and keeping students fed and healthy.
“We believe we provide a good value for our students at $41 a day,” Gore said. “Relative to the Big Ten, we are the third lowest rate and we are around the middle of the pack in Michigan schools.”
