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  • University of Illinois President Tim Killeen is congratulated Jan. 16,...

    Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

    University of Illinois President Tim Killeen is congratulated Jan. 16, 2020, following a board meeting during which his pay raise was approved. At left is board of trustees Chairman Donald Edwards.

  • University of Illinois President Tim Killeen is congratulated Jan. 16,...

    Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune

    University of Illinois President Tim Killeen is congratulated Jan. 16, 2020, following a board meeting during which his pay raise was approved.

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For the first time in six years, tuition will be going up for in-state students attending University of Illinois schools.

Trustees on Thursday unanimously approved a proposal that will raise base tuition for Illinoisans by 1.8% at the campuses at Urbana-Champaign and Chicago, and by 1% in Springfield.

That means tuition for Illinois freshmen in fall 2020 will be $12,254 at Urbana-Champaign, $10,776 at Chicago and $9,502.50 at Springfield.

It will be the first time since 2014 that tuition for in-state students will be increased, ending the tuition freeze implemented by President Tim Killeen. Also Thursday, university trustees unanimously voted to extend Killeen’s contract for four years.

The tuition hikes do not affect currently enrolled students — only the next incoming class. Illinois’ Truth in Tuition law guarantees that the price students pay in their first year of college essentially is locked in for four years.

Room, board and mandatory fees can at least double the total cost of college, absent financial aid.

For instance, the posted tuition and fees for an Illinois resident at Urbana-Champaign this year ranges from $16,000 to $21,000. Once you add room and board, course materials and other expenses, the total cost is $31,000 to about $36,000.

Room, board and mandatory fees also will go up in the 2020-21 school year, as will tuition for out-of-state and international students, officials said.

Though trustees supported the increase, several said they were concerned about what it would mean for affordability, particularly for middle-class families. Trustee Edward L. McMillan speculated about the impact for families making more than $61,000, meaning they would not qualify for U. of I.’s free tuition program.

“Those families that are above that level struggle to attend UIUC, UIS and UIC,” McMillan said.

Susan Panek, the student trustee representing UIC, urged trustees to consider the impact of the tuition hikes on students who are financing their own education.

“It may seem like $5 here, $10 here,” Panek said. “But if you add those dollars up, that’s a textbook for a course you can take in a semester.”

The move to raise prices reflects a constant, complicated battle for university leaders to balance affordability, competitiveness and fiscal security.

In-state tuition was unchanged for several years under Killeen, though fees regularly increased at the Urbana-Champaign and Chicago campuses. The freeze, the longest in university history, overlapped the state’s historic budget impasse and a time when local schools were battling to attract Illinoisans.

Residents long have complained that U. of I., the state’s flagship, is too expensive and does not offer enough financial aid. University data shows all three University of Illinois schools remain among the priciest in their peer groups, even though other schools raised their prices during Illinois’ tuition freeze.

Officials also point out that the university has invested heavily in financial aid in the past decade. About half of all new U. of I. students receive some kind of financial assistance from the school, according to federal data. About two-thirds of new students receive monetary support from UIC and about 90% of first-time students in Springfield get aid from the school.

However, schools throughout the country have also vastly increased financial aid and scholarships available to Illinois students, enabling them to attend a comparable out-of-state school for the same price — or less — than enrolling closer to home.

State data shows thousands of Illinois high school graduates migrate out of state for college. The majority land in the Midwest, but schools such as University of Alabama also have successfully attracted high-achieving Illinoisans.

Despite that, the U. of I. system has logged record enrollment for several years. Since 2016, following Killeen’s first full year at the helm, enrollment has grown 9.5%, from 81,499 to 89,270 last fall.

Much of that increase has come at UIC, where burgeoning freshmen classes have helped boost enrollment by nearly 15% in four years. Urbana-Champaign’s enrollment increased by 10% since 2016, bringing more than 50,000 students to the flagship campus for the first time.

It is not just students who are lured by better offers. Killeen has said an overlooked problem is difficulty hiring and retaining top faculty. While enrollment has spiked, the number of tenure-track faculty has fallen by 2.6% in the past decade, a dynamic that can lead to larger class sizes.

That, he hopes, is what the tuition increase will help address.

“Our faculty are the key reason for the quality of the academic programs available at our universities, and for the increasing numbers of students enrolling at our campuses,” Killeen said in a statement. “These increases in tuition will allow us to attract more innovative educators and researchers and reward those already here.”

Trustees agreed but told leaders they expect to see the boosted income properly invested into faculty and improving student experience.

“I remain concerned about the accessory costs that are beyond the pure academic mission of our beloved university,” trustee Stuart C. King said. “I want us to do all we can to make sure these costs are contained, and the students and their families are being required to pay only for those services which they require as they pursue their education.”

Fees, which help pay for various student and campus services, will increase as follows:

2.5% in Urbana-Champaign, totaling $3,162 per year

1% in Chicago, totaling $3,340 per year

Fees in Springfield will remain $2,426 a year.

Undergraduate room and board will increase as such:

3.65%, or by $394, to $11,168 per year in Urbana-Champaign

2.6%, or by $293, to $11,553 per year in Chicago.

Rates will not change at Springfield. A double-occupancy room in Lincoln Avenue Residence Hall with a gold meal plan still will cost $10,810 per year.

For out-of-state and international freshmen, tuition would increase by 1.8% next fall in Urbana-Champaign, 1% in Springfield and 3.5% in Chicago. Tuition for multiple graduate, professional and online programs also will be higher, officials said, with increases up to 2%.

Also Thursday, university trustees extended Killeen’s tenure as president until July 2024.

His base pay would jump from $600,000 to $835,000, according to a summary of the contract, giving him a 40% raise in his salary. University officials have contested that calculation, saying Killeen’s salary increase is about 19%. The Tribune calculated the difference by comparing Killeen’s guaranteed salary in both contracts: $835,000 versus $600,000.

Killeen assumed the job in 2015. Each year since then, Killeen has received a $100,000 performance bonus, bringing his regular pay to $700,000. University officials said that extra compensation now will be folded into his base salary instead of being paid separately.

The move to keep Killeen in the top job for such a long term is a significant one. The three-school system has not retained a president for this length of time since B. Joseph White served from 2005 to 2009.

Turnover among upper administration has been a problem both at University of Illinois and throughout state universities over the past 15 years. Killeen — approaching five years of service, which is average among college presidents — now is among the longest-serving top administrators in the state.

Killeen also was to receive a $225,000 bonus for serving the entirety of his original five-year contract. But in the wake of several state scandals involving pay for college presidents, the board rescinded that perk at Killeen’s request in 2015.

Should he continue in the job until 2024, however, he would get a $400,000 bonus. That bonus money will not be paid if Killeen resigns or is fired before 2024.

Killeen’s new contract would make him about the fifth-highest paid university president in the Big Ten, according to a database maintained by the Chronicle of Higher Education, putting him behind the leaders of Penn State, Ohio State, Indiana University and University of Michigan.

“This action reflects the trust of the board in President Killeen’s leadership, and signifies endorsement in him to continue to lift the world-class university system closer to the ambitious goals set by the board to expand impact on students, society, and the State of Illinois,” board members wrote in the proposal.

drhodes@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @rhodes_dawn