Higher Education Consistently on the Rise in Albuquerque

Introduction: This presentation is coming in front of the school board members and presidents of both the University of New Mexico and Central New Mexico Community College because the cost of tuition has been continuously rising and students wanted to find some representation. College is an important step in a young high school graduates life. College is the stepping stone to finding oneself, finding a future career, and possibly finding something one loves enough to do for the rest of his or her life. Higher education is becoming increasingly less available to the adolescent population as tuition costs rise almost yearly and loans become less available for students in need. A large percentage of the college students are brand new adults with very little credit looking for a way to gain the knowledge in a field they eventually wish to find a career in later in their lives. These students do not need to be going out and getting tens of thousands of dollars in debt under their belts just to find a better job later on in life. Methodology: Step one- Lets examine tuition cost raises for Central New Mexico Community College (formerly TVI) over the past ten years. The information shown below is from collegecatelogs.org article from three years ago. This shows the percentage of tuition rise between each year from 1993 to 2010 when the article was published. This information was pulled to show that the college tuition raises were newsworthy years ago, however the tuition keeps rising.

2010 - $2,064 In State / $5,640 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.5% Annual Increase 2009 - $1,956 In State / $7,320 Out of State Tuition and Fees. -0.7% Annual Increase 2008 - $1,970 In State / $8,065 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 2.8% Annual Increase 2007 - $1,916 In State / $8,065 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4.3% Annual Increase 2006 - $1,837 In State / $7,835 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 15.1% Annual Increase 2005 - $1,596 In State / $7,473 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 13.2% Annual Increase 2004 - $1,410 In State / $5,792 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 2.8% Annual Increase 2003 - $1,372 In State / $4,511 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4.5% Annual Increase 2002 - $1,313 In State / $3,523 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4.6% Annual Increase 2001 - $1,255 In State / $3,357 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4% Annual Increase 2000 - $1,207 In State / $3,230 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 64.9% Annual Increase 1999 - $732 In State / $2,028 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.2% Annual Increase 1998 - $696 In State / $1,932 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 6.3% Annual Increase 1997 - $655 In State / $1,823 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 3% Annual Increase 1996 - $636 In State / $1,770 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 0% Annual Increase 1995 - $636 In State / $1,770 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5% Annual Increase 1994 - $606 In State / $1,686 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.2% Annual Increase 1993 - $576 In State / $1,608 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4.3% Annual Increase During the past few years, when the possibility to get into the University of New Mexico got harder for students, due to the economy and lack of having a college fund the number of students attending

Central New Mexico Community College hit an all-time high. When classes at CNM began to get over crowded, tuition raised and fewer people were able to attend, therefore adjusting the population but with the higher tuition costs the college didnt experience a loss of funds.

Step two- Now lets examine tuition cost raises for the University of New Mexico over the past ten years.

2010 - $5,101 In State / $17,254 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.5% Annual Increase 2009 - $4,834 In State / $15,708 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.8% Annual Increase 2008 - $4,571 In State / $14,943 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.4% Annual Increase 2007 - $4,335 In State / $14,176 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.5% Annual Increase 2006 - $4,108 In State / $13,437 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 9.9% Annual Increase 2005 - $3,738 In State / $12,500 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 12.8% Annual Increase 2004 - $3,313 In State / $11,954 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4.5% Annual Increase 2003 - $3,169 In State / $11,436 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4.7% Annual Increase 2002 - $3,026 In State / $11,424 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 8.3% Annual Increase 2001 - $2,795 In State / $10,548 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 15.1% Annual Increase 2000 - $2,429 In State / $9,171 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 8.3% Annual Increase 1999 - $2,242 In State / $8,461 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 3.6% Annual Increase 1998 - $2,164 In State / $8,174 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 4.5% Annual Increase 1997 - $2,071 In State / $7,821 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 3.8% Annual Increase 1996 - $1,996 In State / $7,542 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.9% Annual Increase 1995 - $1,884 In State / $7,114 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 5.4% Annual Increase 1994 - $1,788 In State / $6,468 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 8% Annual Increase 1993 - $1,656 In State / $5,880 Out of State Tuition and Fees. 6.6% Annual Increase

With these costs being shown, from the same site as the CNM information gathered from, I am a full time student this semester of college at UNM and based on what I make yearly and no longer having my parents on my tax information I was awarded $10,000 in loans, just to be able to attend school and I am an in state resident. Step three- comparison of the two tuition raise years verses the rise of students attending in subsequent years (show how supply and demand go into the tuition raise process). In 1993 with UNM cost being $1,656 and CNM cost being $576, CNM was $1,080 cheaper than UNM. In 2010 the University of New Mexico cost was $5,101 and Central New Mexico Community College was $2,064, showing that CNM was $3037. When these figures are broken down, there was a 34% increase in 1993, and a 40% increase in 2010. Step four- provide visual examples of tuition raises i.e. tables, graphs charts *still in process of gathering all the evidence and proper tables. Was unable to find tables and graphs for cost comparison. Step five- pros of tuition cost raising. There are many positive things that come about by having a higher tuition cost for each student. As the tuition raises, the schools are able to raise the budgets and

improve the school overall. What I mean by improve the school is not only the classrooms, community areas, and the buildings get attention, but the professors have the possibility of getting paid better. Whether or not we want to admit it, we are human and money does help. When a professor is paid what they deserve instead of being underpaid, the professor is able to give more of themselves because they appreciate their jobs. Step six- cons of tuition costs raising are as follows. As tuition rises, the student population takes the risk of going down, because fewer students are able to afford to go to school. With the tuiton breaks seen at UNM the past few years, there is also the risk of students filling up their schedules with over fifteen credits and find themselves crashing and burning. There is the risk of students losing all steam to continue with their schooling and change their lives, potentially for the worst. Step seven- brief overview of how to fix the problem of consistent tuition raises. I believe that there is a way for the board of directors of each college to sit down with the presidents of the colleges and work up a budget that sticks. A way to raise the budget every two years as opposed to every year. As time goes on the budget can be worked to where tuition raises every three years. I do understand that colleges are dealing with the same pricing increases we all are in our daily lives, however maybe the tuition breaks could be offered to students in their third or fourth years of classes, as they are getting ready to graduate that way loans arent looming over the heads of graduates as harshly as they are now.