Members of the board of trustees voted Wednesday to approve Oakland University’s general fund budget and tuition rates for the 2012 fiscal year,which involved approving a 7 percent tuition increase to graduate and undergraduate tuition+.

The budget was presented to the board by  Vice President of Finance and Administration John Beaghan.

The state allocated $43 million to OU for the upcoming year, placing it eighth among the state’s 15 public universities in state funding.  Beaghan pointed out that figures cannot tell the story of enrollment differences in amongst the schools.

The board approved a budget of $200 million, with an expenditure-side increase of 15 percent.

Because of a clause built into Michigan’s 2012 fiscal budget, the seven percent increase is the lowest a Michigan public institution can raise tuition without incurring an additional seven percent cut in state funding by the legislature.

A 15 percent cut to state funding of public universities, amounting to $7.6 million lost by OU, is the primary cause of the 2012 budget and tuition changes.

Board chair Henry Baskin said that, though the cuts to OU’s aid are “Draconian,”  the university “is going to make it … and it’s primarily because of the (school’s) administration.”

Virinder Moudgil, senior vice president for academic affairs and provost  said that, despite funding cuts, the school will “keep quality up,” and added that the problem lay not with the school, but with Michigan’s legislature.

“Something has to change in the state,” he said.

Benjamin Eveslage, OU’s student counsel president, representing students’ opinions to the budget and tuition changes said, “We are critical, but accepting,” though his deference was not without caveat.

“I believe that students are accepting of the proposed tuition increase of 7%, as long as our personal budgets are able to compensate in due time,” Eveslage added, referring to students’ need to quickly learn of the tuition increases to allow for their re-budgeting.

Other business was also approved during Wednesday’s meeting.

The board unanimously accepted a resolution honoring student liaison Marta Bauer for her dedication and leadership skills while holding her appointed position.

Bauer was appointed to the position by President Gary Russi.

Mary Beth Snyder, vice president for student affairs thanked Bauer for her “outstanding academic achievements, involvement in diverse extracurricular activities and service as student liaison to the Oakland University board of trustees.”

The selection of the architecture and engineering firm of Smith Group to construct OU’s planned School of Engineering, along with a plan for financing was the last item the board considered.

The board approved the selection of Smith Group as construction firm for OU’s school of engineering.

The building will be funded primarily by board approved bonds and has a November 4, 2011, deadline for submission of building plans.  The estimated cost for planning and is $350 thousand.

Louay Mohamad Chamra,  Dean of the School of Engineering and Computer Science, spoke of plans to have a “living lab” environment to teach and live the ideals of clean energy.

Chamra went on to say that this school of engineering building is “most important for the students,” whom, he said, “have been cramped and forced into different buildings.”

Though engineering-student enrollment was down in past years,  Chamra said that enrollment for engineering has risen since the announcement of the new building.

The board also approved the lease and easement agreement that would finance the building of the school of engineering.

Building the school of engineering will cost $65 million, $40 million of which will be financed by the state building authority with the remaining $25 million coming from university grants.

Michigan’s State Building Authority will finance the building through bonds and OU will receive the deed for the property after paying on behalf of the Michigan’s SBA.

Pick up a copy of The Oakland Post this Wednesday, June 15, to read more on this story.