Post by west-texan on Dec 15, 2008 12:51:13 GMT -5
Glad I graduated years ago at WT...when it was much cheaper.
Most professionals are under-paid in Amarillo...and it appears that WT faculty is no exception.
I need to do some research to see where Tech stands vs WTAMU...
Out of 35 Texas state universities...WTAMU ranks as the 32nd lowest in teacher pay.
Got to remember that college/university faculty are the ones training our future leaders.
www.amarillo.com/stories/121208/new_11942844.shtml
Home > News > Local News
Web-posted Friday, December 12, 2008
WT may raise tuition rates again
By Brad Newman
brad.newman@amarillo.com
For at least the fifth consecutive year, students at West Texas A&M University could see an increase in tuition.
But any increase depends on how much the state decides to pitch in, WT officials said Thursday.
Administrators discussed next year's tuition rate during a public hearing in the Jack B. Kelley Student Center.
"How much we have to increase tuition is contingent on how much the state agrees to support higher education in the next biennium," said WT president J. Patrick O'Brien.
Legislators will set WT's appropriations through 2011 during the 81st session, which runs from Jan. 13 to June 1.
"The indication we're getting is that the state is strong financially," said Gary Barnes, vice president for business and finance at WT.
"We're optimistic that higher education will be a priority when it comes to funding."
Efforts to reach state Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, were unsuccessful Thursday.
Chisum is chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, which has oversight over state expenditures.
WT in March will ask the Texas A&M University System board of regents to allow WT to raise its designated tuition up to $15 per semester credit hour.
The university could opt not to raise tuition if state money covers the needed revenue.
Barnes said students likely will pay an additional $7 per hour for the 2009-10 academic year.
Students currently pay $86 per hour in designated tuition.
If WT introduces a full $15-per-hour increase, students would pay $101 per hour, plus $50 per hour in state-mandated, or statutory, tuition.
Students taking 14 hours of classes would pay an additional $210, or about $2,114 per semester, not counting fees.
A $7-per-hour hike would add about $98 to a full-time student's fall 2009 bill.
The university plans to continue to operate with a flat-rate tuition structure.
Under the structure, students who enroll in 12 to 18 semester credit hours all pay the 14-credit-hour designated tuition rate.
Most of the additional tuition revenue would boost faculty and staff salaries, O'Brien said.
WT's average professor pay rate ranks as the 32nd lowest out of Texas' 35 public universities, according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
The tuition revenue also would cover scholarships, rising utility costs and higher wages for student workers due to a national minimum wage hike effective next year.
Only three students attended Thursday's hearing, which was scheduled on the last day of the fall semester's final exams.
"We knew this meeting would not be extremely well attended, but we wanted to get the information out there," O'Brien said.
Four more hearings are scheduled in January and February.
Most professionals are under-paid in Amarillo...and it appears that WT faculty is no exception.
I need to do some research to see where Tech stands vs WTAMU...
Out of 35 Texas state universities...WTAMU ranks as the 32nd lowest in teacher pay.
Got to remember that college/university faculty are the ones training our future leaders.
www.amarillo.com/stories/121208/new_11942844.shtml
Home > News > Local News
Web-posted Friday, December 12, 2008
WT may raise tuition rates again
By Brad Newman
brad.newman@amarillo.com
For at least the fifth consecutive year, students at West Texas A&M University could see an increase in tuition.
But any increase depends on how much the state decides to pitch in, WT officials said Thursday.
Administrators discussed next year's tuition rate during a public hearing in the Jack B. Kelley Student Center.
"How much we have to increase tuition is contingent on how much the state agrees to support higher education in the next biennium," said WT president J. Patrick O'Brien.
Legislators will set WT's appropriations through 2011 during the 81st session, which runs from Jan. 13 to June 1.
"The indication we're getting is that the state is strong financially," said Gary Barnes, vice president for business and finance at WT.
"We're optimistic that higher education will be a priority when it comes to funding."
Efforts to reach state Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, were unsuccessful Thursday.
Chisum is chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, which has oversight over state expenditures.
WT in March will ask the Texas A&M University System board of regents to allow WT to raise its designated tuition up to $15 per semester credit hour.
The university could opt not to raise tuition if state money covers the needed revenue.
Barnes said students likely will pay an additional $7 per hour for the 2009-10 academic year.
Students currently pay $86 per hour in designated tuition.
If WT introduces a full $15-per-hour increase, students would pay $101 per hour, plus $50 per hour in state-mandated, or statutory, tuition.
Students taking 14 hours of classes would pay an additional $210, or about $2,114 per semester, not counting fees.
A $7-per-hour hike would add about $98 to a full-time student's fall 2009 bill.
The university plans to continue to operate with a flat-rate tuition structure.
Under the structure, students who enroll in 12 to 18 semester credit hours all pay the 14-credit-hour designated tuition rate.
Most of the additional tuition revenue would boost faculty and staff salaries, O'Brien said.
WT's average professor pay rate ranks as the 32nd lowest out of Texas' 35 public universities, according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
The tuition revenue also would cover scholarships, rising utility costs and higher wages for student workers due to a national minimum wage hike effective next year.
Only three students attended Thursday's hearing, which was scheduled on the last day of the fall semester's final exams.
"We knew this meeting would not be extremely well attended, but we wanted to get the information out there," O'Brien said.
Four more hearings are scheduled in January and February.
