Fellow Carolinians:
Today is a noteworthy day for University of South Carolina students. This afternoon, the Board of Trustees approved the budget for the 2017-2018 academic year – this budget included a 3.46% tuition increase. As your voice on the board, I attest, this was a difficult yet unavoidable decision. A tuition increase is needed to maintain the world-class higher education we demand and are experiencing.
Now, more than ever in our 216-year history, the university will depend more on student-funding than state-funding. The flagship institution for the state of South Carolina must rely on its students and parents to fill the financial void our state legislature has decided not to fund. As Carolinians, we must continue to lobby our representatives on behalf of all students – past, present and future. It must be a priority for our state to invest in our world class institutions which closely align with the future prosperity of our great state.
The university has a growing list of unfunded needs, infrastructure necessities ranking high in priority. As many of you will recall, I ran for office with the goal of implementing a fee for a new student union. This fee is included in the tuition increase. Future generations of Carolinians will stand on our shoulders as they stand in a new student union – experiencing one of the greatest universities in the country.
This is an important day for the students of the University of South Carolina. The tuition increase we will experience this year will allow for future growth and development as our alma mater continues to stand among the most highly-rated universities in the nation. We must allow ourselves to put our best foot forward – and this increase will ensure we are able to do so.
For Carolina,
Ross
Lordo
Student Body President
University of South Carolina