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No one ever wants to pay more money, but a new survey indicates students considering<\/p>\n
\u201cThey determined what factors actually affect matriculation rate,\u201d said Michele Peterson, vice president of administration and finance for the college. \u201cBased on that, they said resident tuition and fees could increase by 12 percent, while nonresident tuition could increase by 4 percent without driving students away.\u201d<\/p>\n
The analysis showed that the price sensitivity point for room and board fees was $10,000, and the college charges an average of $10,680, with prices varying based on which residence hall and meal plan students choose.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey said that over $10,000 is a trigger point that seems really expensive to families,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The problem, said Steve Schwartz, vice president of finance and administration, is that the consultant didn\u2019t understand some of the housing challenges and expenses in Durango, which has a 1 percent vacancy rate. The college also doesn\u2019t keep all of its revenue in the general fund, but it covers room and board from an auxiliary fund that also has to charge enough in fees to pay for maintenance, refurbishing and upgrading residence halls.<\/p>\n
The other pricing challenge confronting the board is the politics of dealing with the Colorado General Assembly and the Joint Budget Committee. Because the state reimburses the college for the Native American tuition waiver, and more than 50 percent of nonresident students are Native Americans, any tuition increases for nonresident tuition more significantly affects the state\u2019s bottom line.<\/p>\n
Several of the college\u2019s revenue streams originate from the state, and one worry is that one of the revenue streams will be cut to pay for any out-of-state student tuition increase, Schwartz said. Nonresident tuition has held steady for seven years, while resident tuition will see an 8.6 percent increase with the incoming school year at the end of August.<\/p>\n
While it\u2019s far from perfect, the price sensitivity study conducted by Stevens Strategy will give the Fort Lewis College Board of Trustees an idea about which tuition levels start driving away current and prospective students as they consider increases in the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is another confirmation that Fort Lewis is affordable,\u201d college spokesman Mitch Davis said, \u201cand it informs the board. But they will have to ask themselves: How much of a risk politically do you want to take?\u201d<\/p>\n