Iowa State is not alone in its struggle to overcome budget shortfalls and decreases in state support for higher education.

Every institute in the Peer 11 faces a tuition and fee increase for the coming year, according to each school’s Web site. The Peer 11 is a comparison group of public land-grant universities that are classified as doctoral/research universities-extensive.

Iowa State increased tuition 9.9 percent this year, and the Board of Regents has proposed an 18.5 percent increase for next year.

Carl Camacho, vice chairman of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Associated Student Body, said his school has experienced tuition increases for the past five to 10 years.

Two years ago, in-state tuition increased dramatically, Camacho said. This year the state chose to place the budget shortfalls on out-of-state students, he said.

Out-of-state student tuition for Fall 2001 was $7,988. They will pay $8,161 this spring, a $173 increase in one semester, he said.

“The Legislature and governor have decided to allocate money to tax breaks instead of to education,” Camacho said. “The students, especially out-of-state students this year, are really carrying the burden of the budget changes within the state. It doesn’t look like the increases will stop anytime soon.”

The university’s student legislative affairs committee has helped increase financial aid in proportion to the tuition increase to help students, he said, and it will continue to get support for students.

Students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have had tremendous tuition increases as well, said Student Body President Bob Morgan.

Last year, the state phased in a two-year tuition increase of 18 percent for incoming freshmen. After fiscal 2002, Illinois plans to return to a standard 5 percent increase each year.

“It’s kind of unpredictable as to where the state and university budgets will fall as of now,” Morgan said. “We ensured there was a financial aid increase in proportion with the increase. The increase is mostly to help people of lower socio-economic classes so they can remain at the university. We hope the economic and cultural diversity will remain and add to the education people receive here.”

Last year, the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities experienced a 13.5 percent tuition increase. The university is facing a proposed 13.6 percent increase for the coming school year.

Patrick Peterson, representative of the Minnesota Student Association to the Minnesota Board of Regents, said a lot of the tuition increases have occurred because of changes in taxes.

“People are encouraged because taxes are low and they are getting high refunds, but education has become almost a place for voluntary donation,” Petersen said.

He said it isn’t just the government that is at fault, but the university as well.

“The university didn’t mount a strong enough public relations battle,” Peterson said. “We could have done a lot more, and we still can, rather than leaving it all up to the students.”