The latest on Missouri State University's tuition, pay raises, enrollment
Claudette Riley
Two months ago, amid uncertain state funding, Missouri State approved a tuition and fee increase of more than 5 percent.
Top officials said, at the time, they hoped the entire increase was a worst-case scenario and would not be needed. They got their wish.
The university's Board of Governors voted Friday to reduce the increase, nearly by half, after state funding from lawmakers came in higher than expected.
MSU President Clif Smart said in-state, undergraduate tuition will go from $212 a credit hour to $218 — an increase of $6, not the $11 initially planned — and fees will go from $508 to $524.
"The result of that is a 2.87 percent increase in cost in tuition and fees instead of 5.07 percent," he said.
In-state undergraduate students enrolled in 30 credit hours during the 2019-20 year will pay, on average, $212 more than they did this year. Tuition and fees will go from $7,376 this year to $7,588 next year.
"We think we maintain our edge in affordability through this price structure," Smart said.
Missouri State is allowed to increase tuition and fees enough to keep up with inflation or the annual Consumer Price Index. But, it cannot go above that amount, according to state statute. The CPI has gone up 4 percent over the past two years, and the university has increased tuition and fees by 3.8 percent during that same time.
More:Ozarks Technical Community College raises tuition, employee pay for next year
Smart said nearly all public colleges and universities in Missouri increased tuition and fees by 4 to 6 percent for next year.
"We continue to be right at or slightly below CPI and that has been our board's goal all along to maintain that level," he said. "We have been tracking what other universities have done, and we are confident we will have the lowest tuition and fee increase in the state."
Pay increases for faculty, staff
With the tuition and fee increase, the university was able to fund a cost-of-living increase for all employees.
Missouri State has 755 full-time faculty, 1,200 or so staff and then part-time workers.
"Everyone across the board is getting a 1.9 percent increase, that matches inflation," he said. "That cost us about $2.6 million to fund."
The additional revenue will also allow the university to pay another $1.5 million toward pensions and set aside $350,000 to raise student workers' pay to meet higher minimum wage rules in Missouri.
The stipends for graduate assistants, or GAs, will also go up by 1.9 percent.
Enrollment expected to drop
The number of students enrolled at Missouri State has increased in 22 of the past 25 years.
In the fall, the number will likely be down.
"We are expecting to be down somewhere between 2.5 and 3 percent of the overall enrollment," Smart said. "That impacts us, about a $4.5 million revenue loss."
The university is expecting a freshman class closer to 2,700 than the typical 3,000, with fewer international students. With enrollment down dramatically at community colleges, there are not as many students transferring to Missouri State.
"We graduated more people than we've ever had in our history last year, about 5,400, so we had a really big senior class that is rolling off," he said.
In response to the enrollment drop, the university trimmed $2.5 million in spending for next year.
"We do think adjustments need to be made," he said. "... We have done some efficiency moves this year and we anticipate having to do some more next year because you want your employee base to match your customers or the students you have."
New residence hall in the works
Plans for a new residence hall started years ago.
The university entered a public-private partnership with Bryan Properties to construct a 405-bed "traditional" dorm — to university specifications — along the west edge of the campus, at Madison Street and Holland Avenue.
"That gives us room to grow," said Smart, who predicts residence halls will be at least 90 percent full in the fall. "The other thing is you have to plan for the long term, not just the next year or two."
Asked if that residence hall, currently under construction, is needed, Smart said yes. All freshmen are required to spend their first year in a residence hall unless they plan to live with their family less than 60 miles from campus.
More:Post-recession, Springfield area's construction boom is in full swing
"We haven't built a new residence hall in 30 years. We need newer facilities that are state-of-the-art and that will help attract students," Smart said. "We have also, for the last eight years, not encouraged upperclassmen or anyone but freshmen to live in the residence hall because we were so full."
He said the university may offer incentives for second-year students to continue to live in residence halls. "We know they do better academically if they live on campus."