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A small tour group of perspective students stop in front of a giant N at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Student Union on Wednesday.
Top leaders at the University of Nebraska are typically eager to talk about the high points — increases in enrollment, graduation rates and research funding.
Amid 40-year high inflation, gas prices rising above $5 per gallon on average across the country, and the Federal Reserve approving an interest rate hike on Wednesday, NU is happy to highlight the lows.
Next week, at its June 23 meeting, the NU Board of Regents will consider a general operating budget proposal reflecting 1.3% growth over the current fiscal year to top $1.03 billion.
While the total budget is increasing by nearly $12.9 million, NU's year-over-year growth is less than half of the state's 2.8% average annual growth rate, and far below the current 8.6% inflation rate.
And, at a time when tuition rates are continuing to increase at institutions across the country, NU will hold the line on its per credit hour costs for the second straight year, President Ted Carter said, part of what he characterized as a "modest" budget blueprint resulting from collaborations between the university, the Legislature, and Gov. Pete Ricketts.
The cost per credit hour for Nebraska undergraduate students to attend the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will remain at $259, while out-of-state undergrads will continue to pay $830 per credit hour for the 2022-23 school year.
Students in architecture, business and engineering — which have differential tuition rates and pay more to cover the cost of their programs — will also pay the same per credit hour rate as last year.
The freeze extends to NU's other campuses as well.
In-state undergraduate students at the University of Nebraska at Omaha will pay a per-credit hour rate of $235; the University of Nebraska at Kearney will charge in-state students $209 per credit hour; and students at the University of Nebraska Medical Center will pay $259.
In the context of decades-high inflation, Carter said both NU's operating budgets and its tuition rates are at levels comparable to where they were more than a decade ago.
University of Nebraska President Ted Carter speaks during the State of the University address at Nebraska Innovation Campus on Feb. 14.
"The cost of just about everything we deal with from food to supply chain management to education nationwide is going up and it's going up significantly," Carter said. "We are presenting a budget that significantly changes that conversation."
At a media briefing on Wednesday, Carter said the budget that will go before regents next week is the result of three years of work that began at the outset of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020.
As COVID injected uncertainty into the higher education landscape, NU announced $48 million in budget cuts in anticipation of enrollment losses — and, subsequently, a loss of tuition revenue — as well as cuts to its state appropriation.
The cuts provided NU the funding it needed to keep tuition flat and embark on other priorities, which Carter said the university will capitalize on as COVID moves into the endemic phase.
"This budget that we are proposing is pretty much a statement that we are coming out of this in a position of strength," he said. "This is a very conservative approach, it is intentional, and the only way we got here was with a lot of hard work and sacrifice."
The proposed budget raises the household income qualification threshold for the Nebraska Promise program from $60,000 to $65,000, meaning more in-state students will be able to attend NU without paying tuition.
Previously, 7,000 students qualified for the program, which cost $18 million annually. The increase to $19.3 million will allow an additional 1,000 students to qualify.
NU's budget cuts will also provide a $10 million infusion of funds into the salary pool for faculty at UNL and UNMC, while $6 million in additional state funds, will make compensation packages more competitive.
At the end of the fiscal year, Carter said every NU faculty member, including at UNO and UNK, which have faculty unions, will be compensated within 98% and 102% of their peer institutions.
The proposed budget also accounts for an expected 9% increase in health insurance premiums for 2023, as well as a 2% increase in core operations for new and expanded programs, including the Rural Health Complex in Kearney.
Carter said NU's plan reflects "what we said we would do" at the start of the pandemic.
"We're continuing to focus on what we can do for our students, for the families here in Nebraska and make sure that we're giving them the best possible opportunity to get a world-class education at affordable prices," he said.
Regents are scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. in the Varner Hall Boardroom at 3835 Holdrege St.
The full agenda for the Board of Regents will be published Thursday.
Daniel Bartek lounges by the waters of Holmes Lake after a long day of work on Friday, June 10, 2022. KENNETH FERRIERA, Journal Star
Carpet Land’s Caden Cetak (left) slides for home as Judds Brothers’ Chase Blanchard tags him out during the annual Mike Peterson/Coach K Legion tournament championship game Sunday, June 11, 2022, at Den Hartog Field. JAIDEN TRIPI, Journal Star
New Kids on the Block perform Saturday, June 11, 2022, at Pinnacle Bank Arena. JAIDEN TRIPI, Journal Star
Nebraska offensive linemen Kevin Williams Jr (center) huddles up with campers before taking a break during a football camp held at the Lincoln Sports Foundation field on Saturday, June 11, 2022. KENNETH FERRIERA, Journal Star
Spectators watch as purebred pigs are showcased Saturday, June 11, 2022, at the Cornhusker Classic Swine Show at Saunders County Fairgrounds in Wahoo. JAIDEN TRIPI, Journal Star
A bicyclist peddles uphill past a field of wildflowers on a section of the Mopac bike trail near Vine Street on Friday, June 10, 2022. KENNETH FERRIERA, Journal Star
Union Bank’s Reese Kortum pitches the ball against a Millard North batter during a Mike Peterson/Coach K Legion Tournament game on Friday, June 10, 2022, at Densmore Field. JAIDEN TRIPI, Journal Star
Anderson Ford's Braeden Sunken bats in the third inning of a Mike Peterson Tournament legion baseball game against Millard North on Friday, June 10, 2022, at Densmore Park. GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
The flyover bridge that will connect U.S. 77 to the South Beltway has steel beams laid the entire west to east distance on Wednesday, June 8, 2022. GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Lincoln Salt Dogs left fielder Randy Norris dives but misses the catch after a long ball hit by Chicago Dog's Grant Kay ( not pictured) in the second inning at Haymarket Park on Wednesday, June 8, 2022. KENNETH FERRIERA, Journal Star
A rancher takes a load off while waiting for an auction during the annual Cattlemen’s Ball of Nebraska at the Cass County Fairgrounds on June 4 in Weeping Water. The annual fundraiser moves around the state, and is held in a new location each year.
North’s Kamden Dusatko (middle) and his teammates celebrate their win over South in the Shrine Bowl on June 4 at Ron and Carol Cope Stadium in Kearney.
Nebraska head football coach Scott Frost speaks with recruits to wrap up the Friday Night Lights camp at Memorial Stadium on Friday, June 3, 2022. JAIDEN TRIPI, Journal Star
Tire marks mar the surface of the parking lot of Kohls, at the corner of 84th and O street, in this aerial view on June 2.
A memorial to victims of a crash that occurred May 29 is set up on O Street at the site of the crash on June 2.
A family-style seafood boil, tossed in butter and Cajun seasonings, is complimented by New Orleans-style beverages at Bourbon Street by Single Barrel, located in the Haymarket in Downtown, on June 1.
Lincoln Police Officer and CSI instigator Jason Hellmuth talks about using various lights to inspect crime scenes during Bridging the Gap on June 1.
Reach the writer at 402-473-7120 or cdunker@journalstar.com.
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Chris Dunker covers higher education, state government and the intersection of both.
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A small tour group of perspective students stop in front of a giant N at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Student Union on Wednesday.
University of Nebraska President Ted Carter speaks during the State of the University address at Nebraska Innovation Campus on Feb. 14.
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