Room and board rates for the 2003-04 school year will be discussed as the Board of Regents meets Tuesday and Wednesday in the ISU Memorial Union.

An increase of 5 to 7 percent is expected for all Regents universities, said Regent David Fisher, from West Des Moines.

“[Room and board rates] have to keep up with inflation,” Fisher said. “Iowa State has been fortunate to be able to enhance and improve its dormitories, but it comes at a cost.”

Because of the recent and upcoming improvements to ISU residence halls, the proposed rates are higher than at the other Regents universities.

Iowa State has a proposed room and board increase of $720. The University of Iowa has a proposed increase of $446, and the University of Northern Iowa has a proposed increase of $278, according to a Board of Regents docket memo.

Iowa State’s proposed room and board rate for 2003-04 is $5,740, according to the docket. The University of Iowa’s proposed rate is $5,701, and the University of Northern Iowa’s proposed rate is $4,918.

Aside from construction being done to the dorms, the meal plans are another improvement being made.

“[The room and board increases] seem like a large increase,” said Barbara Boose, who is the communication specialist for the Board of Regents. “Part of it is the construction of the new facilities. The university wants to be responsive to students’ wants and desires.”

Some wants students have been expressing are single rooms, single bathrooms, and a change in the meal plans, Boose said.

“Currently, students use only 53 percent of the board plan,” she said.

Although the room and board increase at Iowa State is larger, students are not likely to pay the full amount.

“The proposed increase looks at the full board plan, and the folks at Iowa State thought that very few students would choose the full plan,” Boose said.

Boose said she is not concerned by the increase in the room and board plans.

“Students vote with their feet,” she said. “If they don’t like it, they won’t live there. And so far the occupancy rates look really good.”

The board is required by law to finalize the room and board increases by April, Boose said.

Another issue the Board of Regents plans to discuss is the spring enrollment rate.

Off-campus enrollment is up 17 percent across the three Regents universities this spring, Boose said.