After working hard to gain support to increase differential tuition dollars last year, the Student Senate saw how the money will benefit programs when it approved the proposed differential tuition allocations for the 2003-04 academic year on Monday.
Most differential programs will receive roughly the same percentage of differential tuition as they received last year. However, Senate also passed a bill recommending the use of the additional $50,000 that will be available in the spring to further benefit research and travel.
Differential fees are included in tuition and help fund educational programs such as student/faculty collaborative research, capstone courses, internships, first-year experience courses and service learning projects.
“These programs have so enhanced our university,” said Craig Smith, director of the Academic Affairs Commission. “Regardless if you ever receive the direct (financial) benefits … you have received some benefits of differential tuition when you walk away in your cap and gown.”
The proposed budget that was approved by Senate gives 32 percent ($380,000) of differential tuition to faculty/student collaborative research, 25 percent ($296,875) to first year experience, 15.4 percent ($183,029) to practical experiences and internships, 11.5 percent ($136,669) to capstone experiences and 13.1 percent ($155,301) to service-learning. Three percent ($35,625) is unallocated.
On Oct. 11, the UW-Board of Regents passed legislation to increase the per-student differential tuition fee by $5 every semester from spring 2003 to spring 2004. Beginning with Fall 2004, differential tuition will raise at a flat rate of 4.5-percent each academic year.
The $5 per student increase will result in about $50,000 additional differential funds for the spring, which the Senate made a recommended allocation for Monday.
The bill recommends $44,000 be allocated to the Center of Excellence to fund student-faculty collaborative research and student travel to present research results.
The bill also recommends that $6,000 be allocated to service-learning to fund travel to conferences.
