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The College of Letters & Science has decided to raise a fee many students don’t know exists. The fee increase could make a big difference on a student’s BAR account. Students were not consulted about the increase.

The Instructional Enhancement Initiative fee, charged quarterly to students, will be increased from $4 to $7 per unit for the upcoming winter and spring quarters to make up for funding lost in recent state budget cuts.

For a student taking an average of 15 units per quarter, this fee hike induces a $45 quarterly or $135 yearly increase in fees.

On Nov. 15 Chancellor Albert Carnesale approved Provost Brian Copenhaver’s proposal to raise the IEI fee charged to students, against recommendations from the Student Fee Advisory Committee not to raise the fee.

SFAC stated in a letter to the Chancellor, “We are uncomfortable with campus-based student fees being increased to offset reductions in state funds that include some of the core academic functions of the university.”

According to a letter written by Copenhaver, the student fee money goes toward enhancements in “instructional technology.” The money is split about evenly between maintaining course Web sites and funding for student computing labs on campus, including compensating lab staff and purchasing new hardware.

Prior to recent budget cuts, the state paid for approximately half of the IEI costs, which total almost $6 million. Money from student fees paid for the rest.

With the state’s economy weakening the College is trying to recover a $1.7 million cut from the “instructional technology” budget. The College experienced $4.5 million total in budget cuts.

The College had originally planned to raise the fall quarter IEI fee to $6 per unit and keep it constant for the rest of the year. But since the final budget information for the current fiscal year was not available until September, the fee was kept at $4.

To compensate for this, the fee increase will be a dollar more than planned, at $7 for winter and spring 2003.

If California’s economy recovers and funding to the College is restored, the IEI fee will go back down to $4 in fiscal year 2003-2004. But if state resources are not restored, the fee will be set at $6 per unit indefinitely, starting in fall 2003, to maintain the flow of funds.

“UCLA has had a national reputation for being a technologically advanced university,” said John Sandbrook, assistant provost for the College. “Unfortunately, it costs money.”

The College is raising the fees to keep total funds for the Initiative at just below $6 million, where they were before the budget cuts.

The Instructional Enhancement Initiative was created in 1997 to fund the growth of technology that assists student learning.

The fees were first assessed in 1997 at $2.50 per unit for humanities and social science courses and $3.50 per unit in life and physical science courses. In 2001, the College raised the fees to $4 per unit for all course divisions.

Until now, the student fees have paid for half of the provided services and the state has covered the rest. Now, the SFAC says, UCLA students will be paying nearly the entire operating cost of the IEI.

“Obviously the students do not wish to see services cut, but (the increase) is absolutely inappropriate, especially when no student oversight of that money currently exists,” said Matt Kaczmarek, chair of the University of California Council on Student Fees and SFAC member, in an e-mail.

Angie Cho, a fifth-year history student, feels that raising costs will force students who are already struggling financially to work more, taking time away from activities that allow them to apply their education to the real world.

“If you can’t participate in social justice or other activities, the ideas of the ‘Ivory Towers’ will remain just that – ideas,” she said.

First-year visual arts student Tyler Thacker supports the increase, but admits, “It’s a little scary that so much is up to an outside force to determine what’s good for the students.”

Others in favor of the increase said students should pay necessary costs to maintain the quality of instruction they receive at UCLA.

“Are you going to compromise education? It isn’t ideal, but it’s justified in the given circumstances,” said third-year political science student Alison Harms.