Student Union will hold a protest Thursday to voice concerns over the “OHIO Guarantee”
Ohio University is planning to raise tuition next year, and some students have decided to protest.
The OU Student Union is organizing a demonstration, which will take place on College Green at 5 p.m. on Thursday.
The protest is being held in advance of the OU Board of Trustees meeting, which will take place Jan. 22 and 23.
During that meeting, the board will vote on what the price of tuition will be under what the university calls the “OHIO Guarantee” — a fixed tuition model.
The model was created to keep education costs consistent and predictable for future OU students.
“(Guaranteed tuition) would help me plan,” said Caleb Wright, a sophomore studying biology. “If I know that I have to pay this amount of money for four years straight that would help a lot.”
Students currently enrolled at OU will not be affected when the tuition model takes effect in fall 2015.
The agenda for the January board meeting shows a suggested 5.1 percent increase in tuition and fees for incoming freshmen, who will be the first students affected by the new model.
Last academic year, under the current tuition model, tuition rose 1.5 percent.
Under the guaranteed model, a tuition rate will be decided for each incoming class and won’t be changed for that class for four years.
Caitlyn McDaniel, vice president of OU Student Senate, doesn’t think the tuition model will be beneficial for students.
"It's a really big deal and once the Board of Trustees passes it through, it's a lot harder to fight,” she said. “Most students are on the same page that tuition hikes are not productive.”
Justin Telep, a senior studying freshwater biology, is unsure about guaranteed tuition.
“Within your four years it could go over 5 percent, so there is no way to know if it’s better,” he said.
OU’s Student Union plans to hold additional protests next week, closer to the board meeting.
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