Eastern Oregon University Board of Trustees to decide on tuition increase

May 10—LA GRANDE — A tuition increase could be on the horizon for students at Eastern Oregon University.

As institutions of higher education deal with the repercussions of inflation, lowered enrollment and the COVID-19 pandemic, public universities across the nation are turning to higher tuition rates. At Eastern Oregon University, a pending board decision on Thursday, May 19, could lead to similar increases in the coming years in order to continue offering services at the highest quality.

"The priority is always on student resources and student support services, how do we ensure that our students get the best that they need to be successful and graduate," said Tim Seydel, Eastern's vice president for university advancement.

Six out of Oregon's seven public universities saw decreased enrollment in the 2021-22 academic year, with Eastern included in that group. Eastern's 2021 fall enrollment was 2,825, compared to 2,853 in the fall of 2020 and 3,067 in 2019. Of that student population, 65% are Oregon residents and 35% are from out of state. The university had 1,193 part-time enrollments and 1,632 full-time students.

Eastern Oregon froze tuition in 2021 as a result of the pandemic but is considering an increase of just under 5% for undergraduate students for the 2022-23 academic calendar. The decision revolves around lengthy discussions from the tuition advisory committee and budget planning committee, which consists of students, faculty and staff — the recommendation from the two committees will be handed up to the board's finance administration board and then decided upon by the board.

Eastern's student population primarily divides into on-campus and off-campus students, a trend that existed well before the COVID-19 pandemic increased the usage of online learning at all universities. According to Seydel, the pandemic multiplied that trend and led to more incoming students taking the online approach.

"What we saw over time was more students shifting to the online modality," he said. "We also saw a slight increase in the number of traditional students wanting to go into our online program."

With tuition and student fees accounting for roughly half of most universities' overall revenue, lowered enrollment trends due to the pandemic play a pivotal role. Add in the ongoing inflation, and colleges are being forced to increase tuition while they concentrate efforts on rebuilding enrollment to pre-pandemic levels.

"Certainly the emphasis is to increase enrollment to ensure that more student have an opportunity to go to Eastern," Seydel said. "What we're doing there is really focused on intensive connection with our students and prospective students."

Seydel noted that the university's aim is to retain its student services and its faculty members. The challenge of enrollment creates a balance between managing cost factors while still ensuring that EOU can continue to serve as an affordable, accessible university.

"We're trying to do everything we can to make it possible for them to come to La Grande, be on our campus, be here taking classes, meet one on one with their faculty mentors, and be able to get the wraparound services they need from our tutoring centers or student support areas so that they can be successful," Seydel said.