TCU’s Board of Trustees met Friday and discussed a wide variety of strategies designed to help the University continue moving toward becoming an excellent private university and developing students into leaders who can handle the challenges of an increasingly connected world.

 

The Trustees acknowledged that to do so, ongoing innovations and improvements must be supported. Therefore, they voted to increase tuition by 5.8 percent to $36,500 for undergraduates for the 2013-2014 academic year*. Institutional financial aid, which includes need-based aid and new merit-aid scholarships for incoming students, will be increased by 7.5 percent, or approximately $7 million.

 

“Our students desire a high quality educational experience that includes a personalized setting with a low student to faculty ratio, facilities equipped with cutting edge technology and an exceptional on-campus living environment,” said Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr. “ The results of this kind of experience are evident in the number of students who find jobs, go on to graduate school and, ultimately, become leaders in the global community. At the same time, we must continue investing in financial aid to help those who need financial support to obtain a TCU degree.”

 

The University has strengthened its focus on scholarships and financial aid.  Over the last five years institutional financial aid has increased by 79 percent. This academic year, the University has budgeted $100 million in financial aid, with about $90 million coming from the institution and about $10 million from outside sources. Additionally, TCU students pay 68 percent of the total cost of a TCU experience, with the remaining 32 percent covered predominately by gifts from donors and TCU’s endowment. Through The Campaign for TCU the University set a $100 million goal for scholarships, and ultimately raised $108.7 million.

 

The tuition increase will provide TCU with the opportunity to continue investing in key areas such as:
•    Faculty and staff: TCU added 20 new faculty positions this year, resulting in 147 new faculty positions over the past 10 years. The increase will help TCU maintain a low, approximately 13:1 student-to-faculty ratio and sustain the personalized TCU experience. TCU also created 16 new staff positions this year in areas such as academic advisors in Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences and the College of Education, Honors College support staff, and support staff in the School of Music.   
•    Facilities: TCU keeps adding and improving the facilities on campus including residence hall renovation and building new residence halls to house more students on campus.
•    Resources: The University has provided funding to improve technology in areas such as computer lab improvements and network upgrades to support new technologies.

 

TCU continues to enhance and update facilities to provide a total university experience. Now TCU is addressing new opportunities. In February of 2012, the Board of Trustees approved a new phase of Vision in Action, the University’s strategic plan, called the Academy of Tomorrow that will guide TCU for the next six years and beyond. The Board set out three areas of focus in creating the Academy of Tomorrow: enhancing the University’s academic profile and strengthening its reputation, fine-tuning the size and balance of the student body and constructing an optimal campus environment.

 

Design development began on a vital component of the Academy of Tomorrow — an Intellectual Commons on the east campus intended to be as transformative as the existing Campus Commons has been to the west. Designed to foster innovation and collaboration and to create interdisciplinary connections, it will include:
•    A transformation of the Mary Couts Burnett Library
•    A new instructional building east of the library
•    An addition to the Annie Richardson Bass Building and renovation of existing space for Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences

 

In other business, the Trustees reviewed the results of the Campaign for TCU, which concluded May 31, 2012. TCU exceeded its original $250 million goal by raising $434.1 million and exceeded the scholarship initiative goal of $100 million by raising $108.7 million.  Thirteen new endowed faculty positions were created and donors gave $67 million for faculty and academic program support.

 

TCU’s official class numbers for the 2012-13 academic year are 8,456 undergraduates and 1,269 graduate students for a total of 9,725 students.

 

The Board of Trustees will hold its next meeting April 10-12, 2013.


  * Graduate tuition also increases by 5.8 percent equating to $1,270 per semester hour for all graduate programs except the Master of Liberal Arts program, which is $770 per semester hour.