Spring Break
Food, energy prices play part in housing rate increase
Jessica Leggin / Campus Editor
Issue date: 2/2/09 Section: News
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With an annual budget of $34 million, housing and dining rates will be increased by 6.45 percent, a 0.05 percent decrease from last year's increase.
Mark Hudson, director of Housing and Dining Services, said room and board rates are not a set price like tuition is.
"Housing and dining is not frozen," he said.
Hudson said the Bond Revenue Committee, which is composed of six students, reviews potential room and board rate increases. The Residence Hall Association president and the student body president appoint students to the committee.
"These students have to live in the residence halls or Greek Court," Hudson said. "These students are empowered by their respected bodies to spend 10 hours on what is influencing our rates, talk about the budget and our income and expenses."
Hudson said once the committee comes to a consensus about the housing increase, the proposal would go to Dan Nadler, the vice president for student affairs.
"After he reviews it, then it goes to the university president and then to the Board of Trustees for approval," he said.
Hudson said there are many influences on why the cost of housing and dining seems to go up.
"There is certainly an increase in cost," he said. "The food cost is projected to go up by 8 percent."
Hudson said the annual budget for food is $4.5 million. With the 8 percent increase, an extra $400,000 is needed.
He said another influence for the increased cost is utilities.
"The projection for energy is a 13.5 percent increase for next year," he said. "Our utility bill now is $3.5 million."
Hudson said the university has also given all unionized workers such as the dining center cooks and building service workers a 3 percent increase in wages for the next three years that was negotiated in their contracts.
Capital projects also increase room and board rates.
Douglas Hall received a $3.5 million makeover last summer, including a fire suppression system and an upgrade to the bathrooms. Hudson said because of a residence hall satisfaction survey for residents that asked the question about bathrooms, Douglas was the least satisfied when it came to theirs.
Hudson said a project like this cannot be done every year, but Lincoln Hall will receive a makeover in 2010 and Pemberton in 2012. "We did a designated order by the survey," he said.
Also, residence hall room renovations that provide the stackable furniture are still taking place.
Hudson said to update each floor in a residence hall it costs $300,000. He said the university is about 65 percent done with all residence hall room renovations.
"It will still take us about another four to five years to get all of them done," he said.
Hudson said the university is sensitive to the students' needs living on campus.
"We want to have enough students to come back and live on campus," he said. "If we do not have enough students living on campus, then we're not going to be able to pay for things that are important for the student body."
Jessica Leggin can be reached at 581-7942 or at jmleggin@eiu.edu.
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