Volume 19, Issue 26 - March 7, 1997

Page 1

;'\letropolitan State College of Denver ::.tudent new.;paper serving the A11r,1ria Campus since 19~9

Lending a hand Gov. Roy.Romer shakes hands with Auraria Child Care Center kindergartner Brittany Trigg who gave him a mural for Auraria's 20th anniversary celebration in St. Cajetan's Center.

-.

See story Page 3.

.

Adam Dennis/ The MEIROPOLITAN

.- Tuition hike dies on Capitol Hill Legislative committee kills the third phase of Metro's special 12% increase

Christopher Anderson A. Jeter The METROPOLITAN

Students will not have to fork out an extra 4 percent in tuition next year after a key legislative committee voted 5-0 Thursday against the hike. Members of th.e Joint Budget Committee, which is considered to be the most powerful body in the Colorado legislature, said student opposition played a major role in their decision. Some members said they voted against the measure because Metro's administration failed to live up to promises on how the money would be spent. Sen. Jim Rizzuto, D-Swink, who

NE\VS

.

.

made the motion to oppose the increase, said students successfully documented that the administration had not provided more faculty, which was one of the conditions of raising tuition. "What they (students) thought they were getting by supporting the tuition increase, they weren't," he said. The chairwoman of the committee, Sen. Elsie Lacy, R-Aurora, said the most important issue, however, was that the administration has met its goal of raising tuition to a level that is fiscally competitive. "We are not interested in trying to gain more money," Lacy said. The special 4 percent increase was part of a three-year plan to raise tuition 12

percent in addition to regular increases. The increase had the support of student government for the past two years. With that support, the administration successfully .raised tuition 8 percent beyond regular increases. Regular increases are usually about 2 percent each year and are meant to compensate for inflation. This year's Student Government Assembly voted to oppose the third phase after hearing student input and deciding the increase could not be justified. Metro communications director of Debbie Thomas said the administration will try to learn· the reasoris the JBC members voted against the decision and possibly ask them to reconsider. Metro President Sheila Kaplan said in

previous student government meetings that without the special tuition increase, Metro would not have the money to improve academic advising and mentorship programs. She said those are the two issues of most concern to students. Student government agreed to allocate dollars to those areas if the increase was approved. Vice Chairman Rep. Tony Grampsas, R-Evergreen, was absent during the JBC's vote and unaware that his colleagues killed the deal. He said he would have supported the increase because the JBC made a three-year deal with the administration and that he was morally obligated to live up to it. State law, however, preSee TUITION Page 5

FEATURES

"'II\'

CoPIRG camp-out a success

Poets share their struggle with students

Swi rs --~~• ~ spl•aL

Page 3

Page 7

Page 10


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.