When the MSU Board of Trustees meets on Friday, it will vote whether to establish a School of Planning, Design and Construction and whether to increase the cost of living in residence halls by 4.4 percent.

The new school would be under both the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the College of Social Science, and would combine four different programs from three colleges.

"It's a great idea," said Robert von Bernuth, director of the construction management program. "It puts together disciplines that ought to work together. It's been a long time coming, and a lot of people have worked hard."

Von Bernuth has been recommended for the director position for the proposed school, and he said he hopes the trustees will vote in favor of the plan he said began in early 2000.

"We've been working on this for a while," he said. "If I weren't an optimist, I wouldn't have come this far."

The trustees also will vote on a $228 increase per year for the residence halls. The new cost of $5,458 per school year would become effective in the fall.

Chuck Gagliano, vice president of Housing and Food Services, said MSU traditionally has tried to keep the increases at the rate of inflation.

Last year, the 6-percent increase was higher than the inflation rate of 2.4 percent, but this year, it's lower, he said.

MSU still would have the most inexpensive housing rates of all the Big Ten universities, as well as Michigan universities.

Gagliano said some students might not be happy with the increase, despite its standings.

"We worked very hard to minimize our expenses," he said. "Like anybody else, I'm sure they won't like an increase, but everything does increase every year."

The lower prices help to encourage students to live on campus, too, Gagliano said.

"It's important for us to be competitive with off-campus housing," he said.

MSU Trustee Colleen McNamara said the board probably will discuss the possible relocation of MSU's College of Human Medicine to Grand Rapids. She said MSU Provost Lou Anna Simon's plan for the future of MSU's liberal arts - which details reconstructing several colleges - also might come up in the discussions, especially because of all the controversy surrounding the issue.

But controversy is necessary, she said.

"It's very controversial and it should be," she said. "I'd be disappointed if it weren't controversial.

"It means people are very engaged."