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Regents OK Building Change, New Online Degrees, Fee Increases
Nov. 19, 2010
SHSU Media Contact: Julia May
A revision of plans for a proposed building near Bowers Stadium was among the items approved by the Texas Sate University System Board of Regents at their regular quarterly meeting Friday.
The regents — Sam Houston State University’s governing body — met on the campus of Lamar University in Beaumont.
The building was originally designated as an alumni center. However, upon programming phase completion in October, it was changed to an event center when the need for an on-campus facility to accommodate university events, athletics sales and marketing, learning enhancement, and alumni relations was documented. The project will now go into the design phase.
The regents also approved adding a new Continuing Education and Small Business Center to the list of projects in SHSU’s capital improvements program. The facility will be located on university property at 13th Street in Huntsville.
Regarding curriculum matters, the regents authorized SHSU to offer several online degree programs including the Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice, the Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration, and the Master of Arts in Sociology.
The regents also approved tuition and fee increases effective with the Fall 2011 semester. The mandatory fee increases include:
• Recreational Sports Fee - from $90 to $97 per student
• Medical Service Fee - from $36 to $39 per student
• Computer Use Fee – from $18 to $19 per semester credit hour
• Intercollegiate Athletic Fee – from $15 to $16 per semester credit hour
• Student ID Card Fee – from $12 to $15 per student
Non-mandatory fee increases include:
• Graduation Application Fee (bachelor’s degrees) – from $25 to $70
• Graduation Application Fee (master’s degrees) – from $25 to $105
• Graduation Application Late Charge – from $25 to $30
• Correspondence Course Fee – from $270 per 3-semester credit hours to $573 per 3-semester credit hours
• Educator Preparation Program Application Fee – from $75 to $100 per student
• English Language Institute Program Enrollment Fee – from $2,000 to $2,600 in the fall and spring semesters and from $500 to $650 in the Summer I and Summer II sessions.
“The increases relating to graduation fees are due to the rise of expenses in commencement ceremonies,” SHSU President Dana Gibson told the regents.
The university has adopted standardized SHSU regalia at commencement ceremonies and the fees will now include the purchase of a gown, cap and tassel for bachelor’s degree candidates and a gown, cap, hood and tassel for master’s degree candidates.
Tuition will increase from $163 to $171 per semester credit hour, effective fall 2011. The increase was proposed to provide funds for the increasing costs of salaries and benefits for faculty promotion and tenure adjustments. In addition, the increase will help fund new nursing and allied health program costs, criminal justice growth, the new College of Fine Arts and Mass Communication, and general engineering initiatives.
“It will also assist in recovering the decrease in general revenue from the prior legislative session as well as the anticipated loss of ARRA-Federal Stimulus Funds provided in the fiscal year 2010-11 biennium that will not be available for the fiscal year 2012-13 biennium,” Gibson said.
Sam Houston State University Distinguished Alumnus Charlie Amato of San Antonio was named chairman of the TSUS Board of Regents. Amato has served as vice chairman of the board during the past year. He replaces Ron Blatchley of Bryan, also an SHSU graduate, who completed his term.
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