‘The Simpson Experience’ now costs just over $25,000 after a 6.5percent increase in comprehensive fees.

The Board of Trustees decided to increase tuition, which nowtotals $19,430, and the student government fee, now costing $205,by 8.5 percent.

“We look at the entire budget,” said President LaGree. “Whatdoes it take to pay the salaries, run the facilities that we have,buy the equipment we need and the books we need for the library,etc.”

There are three main sources of income. Tuition and fees; whichincludes room and board, make up 88.4 percent of the budget. TheEndowment provides 6.9 percent and gifts account for 3.1 percent ofthis year’s budget.

Miscellaneous earnings account for 1.6 percent. One way to earnmoney is to host different kinds of camps throughout thesummer.

This year the endowment lost $500,000 in the stock market.

“We’re having to make up for that, and continue to improve,”says LaGree. “We really work hard at balancing the need to keepimproving the quality of ‘The Simpson Experience’ with thefinancial resources of our students and their families.”

Two new full-time positions were added this year. Scott Nancewas hired as Evening Supervisor for campus security. Walter Lainwas also hired as Assistant Dean of Multicultural and InternationalAffairs.

Three new faculty members will also be added to the philosophy,criminal justice and political science departments.

Though tuition and student government fees are rising, room andboard is not.

“This year for the second year in a row, we thought our room andboard charges were a little high,” said LaGree when comparing ourcosts to the costs of our comparison schools.

Because of the comparison, costs were not raised for room andboard.

“We know how difficult it is for many of our students and theirfamilies,” said LaGree. “It sounds easy in the abstract, but whenyou’re applying it to a particular person and their work, the sameas you’re applying tuition to people you know and like in thestudent body, it’s hard.”