If Gov. Jim Doyle’s budget plan goes through the state legislature, the UW System will face significant budget cuts.

How those budget cuts affect UW-Eau Claire is the topic of the Wednesday’s Chancellors Roundtable at 4 p.m. in the Presidents Room, Davies Center.

Chancellor Donald Mash said the idea to talk about the budget’s impact on the Eau Claire campus came from conversations with Student Senate.

“Now that the budget has been released, it’s important that students know how it will affect them,” Student Senate President Sarah Schuh said. “This is a great time for students to get engaged.”

Schuh said this year’s budget would affect the System profoundly more than last year’s.

“Last year because of the budget, we had to keep the library from being open 24 hours, and students were pretty angry about that,” Schuh said.

Doyle’s plan includes an increase in Eau Claire’s tuition of no more than $250 per semester.

As stated in a release from the University News Bureau, if the tuition does increase by the maximum outlined in Doyle’s plan, undergraduate tuition at Eau Claire would be $3,600 a year.

Even with the increase, the average tuition at System comprehensive schools would rank 31st out of 35 comparable schools in the Midwest.

Schuh said that aside from providing information, she hopes the Roundtable will be a forum for students to voice their concerns about the budget.

“I would like to hear stories from some of the students,” she said. “I want to hear how a $500 increase would affect their lives.”