The cost of education at Iowa State could jump by almost 10 percent next year if the Board of Regents approves its current proposal to raise tuition and fees at its October meeting. The proposed 9.9 percent total increase would force in-state ISU students to pay $310 more next year, and out-of-state students would have to pay $802 more. In-state tuition and fees at the University of Iowa would increase by $210, and out-of-state costs would go up by $965. At the University of Northern Iowa, in-state students would pay $310 more, while out-of-state students would pay $668 more. The proposal includes a base-tuition increase of 7.2 percent for all three schools, and the tuition-fees split accounts for the remaining 2.7 percent of the increase for Iowa State. Regent Clarkson Kelly of Charles City said the figures were close to what he anticipated since the state legislature voted to cut millions of dollars from the state school budgets last spring. “The total amount was pretty much correct and on target,” Kelly said. “I think we have a lot to make up for, and our only real resource is going to be tuition.” For students, however, the regent numbers were higher than expected, said Andy Tofilon, co-director of intergovernmental affairs for the Government of the Student Body. Inflation is figured into the tuition total using a number called the Higher Education Price Index, which could range from a 2.6 percent to 6.4 percent increase this year. In the regent proposal, HEPI accounts for 5.2 percent of the increase. “We were thinking they were going to take the medium of HEPI,” Tofilon said, which would be about a 4.5 percent increase. To combat the near double-digit increase, student leaders from Iowa State, the University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa have come together to launch a joint protest to the Board of Regents. The leaders will make a 30-minute presentation to the regents at their September meeting next week in Iowa City. GSB representatives are lobbying to slash the increase to 6.74 percent for ISU students. UI student leaders are looking to minimize the increase to 6.17 percent, and UNI representatives hope to lower the increase to 7.18 percent. Each university has a different fees system, but each figure is based on a 4.3 percent across-the-board tuition increase, which GSB finance committee members said will be enough for the university to continue making improvements. “We’re sure the schools can survive on this much tuition revenue,” GSB Finance Director Steve Medanic said. “This will allow for smaller, targeted advances in the university.” He said if the regents approve the 9.9 percent increase, many Iowa students won’t be able to afford the regent institutions. “We’re afraid some students will be left behind if we take the Board of Regent’s route,” Medanic said. Kelly said he realizes the increase may drive students away from regent institutions, but he does not anticipate a drastic change in enrollment. “I think there’s going to be a lot of [students] who think it’s too expensive, and their families are going to be concerned,” he said. “I believe most students who are interested in their future occupations will realize the difference between a college degree and no college degree . and I think they realize it is a pretty good investment.” If the regents were to adopt GSB’s proposed 6.74 percent increase, costs for in-state students would increase $233 next year, and out-of-state students would pay $520 more, Medanic said. Kelly said he doubts the student leaders will be successful in minimizing the tuition and fees numbers. “I can’t blame them, but I don’t personally think they’ll be successful because we need to keep the quality up,” he said. “I’m very sympathetic, but I think this problem with accessibility versus quality is a very difficult problem for all of us.” Last year, the regents approved a 4.3 percent increase for this year’s tuition despite the protests from student leaders. However, Medanic said the united effort among the three regent universities could make more of an impact. “We think we’re farther ahead in the process this year,” Medanic said. “We think we’ll make an impact and we hope the regents will come down closer to our numbers.”