June 14, 2012. Without the increase FAU administrators say they will cut 75 faculty positions, 9 advisers and up to 500 course sections, crowding classrooms and leaving students with fewer options.
By John Kennedy
Palm Beach Post Capital Bureau
June 13, 2012
TALLAHASSEE —With Gov. Rick Scott still fighting tuition hikes, Florida’s 11 public universities may be forced to wheel-and-deal next week when they go before the higher education system’s Board of Governors.
With schools struggling to cover a $300 million reduction in state funds, most universities, including Boca Raton’s Florida Atlantic University, are expected to seek the maximum allowable 15 percent increase.
The University of Florida has broken ranks, putting a 9 percent boost on the table. And the play – intended as a compromise with the tuition-resistent governor – could trigger a free-spirited run of offers and counteroffers among the schools.
At the very least, many educators predict that – unlike recent years — schools will have to amp-up their sales pitches during the three-days of Board of Governors meetings.
“With the significant decline in state revenue, it used to be that the only thing to do was to go to the maximum each year,” said Frank Brogan, a former FAU president and now State University System Chancellor.
“I’m not sure that’s going to be easily saleable this year. There’s going to be a lot of scrutiny,” he added. “I don’t know what (the board) is going to do. I just know that universities need to come fully prepared for significant scrutiny.”
FAU is expected to finalize its request Tuesday and make its pitch to the board the next morning. But officials are already working on their defense of the request for a 15 percent hike in the state average $5,626 annual tuition.
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