Fees for dorms to increase

Students who live on campus will likely pay 6 percent more for housing next year.\nResidential Programs and Services will be proposing the increase today at the board of trustees meeting. \nTypically, housing rates increase by only 3 to 4 percent each year. However, rising insurance costs for RPS employees and new construction projects forced this year's increase to be greater, RPS executive director Pat Connor said.\nLast year, the RHA presidents voted to end the rate freeze which offers all returning students who choose to live in the residence halls the same rate for housing they paid the year before. At the time, RPS said the decision would save all students money. They also promised that as a result, future rate increases would not be more than 4 percent.\nConnor said the increase is necessary to improve the residence hall experience. \n"We believe this will allow us to cover cost increases in areas and allow us to reinvest and continue to make improvements in the residence hall facilities," he said. "It's a proposal we feel will do the things we need to do to keep the residence halls in good shape without cutting any services."\nThe proposal angers IU's student housing leaders, who said the increase will drive students away from living in the residence halls in the future.\n"They said they wouldn't let it go up as much," junior Eric Hafner said. "I understand why they are raising it, but it's the whole point that they said they wouldn't."\nAt today's meeting, RHA student leaders Smith, Hafner and Josh Nix plan to tell the trustees they oppose the size of the increase. \n"If we don't say something, then we are not doing our jobs," Hafner said. "It we let it go, what is going to happen in the future?"\nThe rate increase translates into a cost of about $65 per student, Smith said. The trustees will vote on the increase at their April meeting. \nSmith would like to see either the rates lowered or the rate freeze put back into effect, she said.\n"I hope that the trustees will suggest that somehow the rates be lowered back to 4 percent, but if they do that, they'll have to start cutting services, which we don't want to happen either," Smith said. "I would love to see them bring back the rate freeze. Nobody wants to see a 6 percent increase. And if it goes up that much each year, then they need another incentive for people to stay."\nSmith, one of only two residence hall presidents who opposed last year's decision to end the rate freeze, said the increase is a sign that RPS doesn't care about student retention.\n"The whole idea of the rate freeze is to provide incentive for upperclassmen to stay in the dorms, so they don't have to pay more," she said. "They always say they care about retention, but they're taking away the rate freeze and the incentive to stay in the residence halls."\nOne of RPS's reasons for getting rid of the rate freeze was to disperse the amount of money paid by each class, Smith said. Therefore, rates as a whole wouldn't go up as much each year. \nShe suggests students e-mail their residence hall presidents and complain about the rate increase. \n"As a student government leader, I want people to stay in the residence halls," Smith said. "I want to keep it comfortable and easy for them to live here."\nConnor said the trustees will look at all the incoming costs students face when they vote on the proposal.\n"It's just a proposal, so the board of trustees can react to that and take a look at it with all the other costs related to students going to IU," Connor said.