Brown and White Vol. 94 no. 26

              lehigh university brown and white vol 94 — no 26 bethlehem pa friday january 21 1983 215)861-4184 declining inflation rate cuts tuition hike to 800 by tom dipiazza a raise of 800 in the annual tuition rate a smaller percentage and dollar increase than in the previous two years was approved by the board of trustees on jan 14 tuition will increase 11.1 percent to 8,000 per year see table page 8 in addition increases in room and board charges were also approved bringing the total cost of a university education for most students to 10,900 the decline in the rate of increase was attributed to economic factors particu larly the declining inflation rate by uni versity vice-president and treasurer john woltjen the inflation rate is approximately five percent if the inflation factor stays down to where it appears to be at this time increases might be more modest in the future " he said he noted however that the tuition increases also depend on any projects the university might undertake that would put upward pressure on the tuition charge the university should remain about average with the 16colleges with which it compares itself for tuition costs accord ing to woltjen the university is cur rently just 25 below that average he said woltjen also said the tuition increase was due to three factors improved salary compensation increases in gen eral expenditure funding and funding for new projects a total of 1.46 million is budgeted for new projects including salaries for additions to the faculty aid to academic programs and funding for the university's computing facilities room charges increased 14 percent the increases are 170 200 or 210 for the three categories of university hous ing woltjen said the increase is due to two factors the first is to help fund the renovation of taylor hall and the second is to increase the university's deferred maintenance account we're trying to provide for additional funding for deferred maintenance so we keep the residence halls in good condi tion for the years ahead he said the 21-meal plan will increase 80 to 1,320 with other meal plans increasing proportionately undergraduate financial aid will increase 18 percent compared to an increase last year which just covered the tuition increase woltjen said the increase was due to a desire to do as much as we can to improve the quality of the lehigh student he said the univer sity is particularly interested in increas ing the amount of aid it offers incoming freshmen we're trying to aid incoming students probably on a larger percentage than our history has been in recent years " he stated in a letter and attached summary out lining several sources of financial aid mailed yesterday to parents and gradu ate students university president peter likins said in part although the cost increases this year are smaller than we have experienced in each of the last two years . we realize that the addi tional burden can be significant mohler costs squeeze middle-class students by tom dipiazza editor's note this is the first of a two-part interview with harold mohler 48 chairman of the board of hershey foods corporation and president of the university board of trustees make budget cuts the university recently completed what mohler called an important program to increase the level of faculty salaries to keep the uni versity competitive in the market we think that's been accomplished he said and wed like to keep that com petitive position for lehigh mohler also said that administrative growth has increased the university's salary burden but that costs in this area may continue to rise as things get tougher we need better and better tech niques of management and the man power to implement them he said mohler said the university is well managed and enjoys a good reputa tion i think an education at lehigh is perceived to have value he said he said that perceived value is reflected in several ways including the continued increases in the number of applications for admission the university receives i think for the people that can swing it the tuition costs that perceived value is important mohler said of course the more dollars you put into it the more crit ical or sensitive you are going to be to what you think your son or daughter is going to get out of a lehigh education in referring to perceived value mohler said the tuition increases of peer institutions are only a factor in determin ing the university's tuition when it is obvious that were losing position you try to be sensitive to that and try to retain whatever reputation you have and hopefully increase it he said despite these pressures mohler said the board remains concerned with rising tuition costs there has always been a great sensi tivity to increasing tuition and fees nobody says well they'll just have to scrape a little harder i don't know a trustee who isn't concerned about it harold mohler snowmobile b*wphoh.b,johntr e.chler faculty appeal committee upholds kappa sig decision darren maloney tion of their faculty friend assistant professor of marketing steven buell from reading a prepared statement not permitting a letter from the district attorney to be introduced and errors in procedure by the university case officer associate dean of students robert cohen and committee chairman pro fessor of education raymond bell the chairman of the faculty appeal committee professor of metallurgy ste phen tarby wrote in a letter to kappa sigma dated jan 7 that the major points raised in the appeal pertain to what may be proper questions relating to a criminal sexual assault case charging specific persons with specific acts this case however involves corporate responsibility for offenses against another person under the laws of the lehigh campus in essence no single person was charged specifically with the act it was the fraternity as a corporate body it was not a criminal case in which you must be very specific tarby said on that subject of specificity cohen said he had found the evidence ade see appeal page 6