Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
Summary of Consultation Letters Regarding Tuition and Fees, FY2015 (Updated 6/6/14)
College/University submissions may contain Revenue Fund Letters not rated
College/University
SP-10
Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Neutral
X Alexandria Technical and Community College
Anoka-Ramsey Community College
Cambridge
Coon Rapids
Anoka Technical College
Bemidji State University
Central Lakes College
Brainerd
Staples
Century College
Dakota County Technical College
Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College
Hennepin Technical College
Brooklyn Park
Eden Prairie
Inver Hills Community College
Lake Superior College
Metropolitan State University
Minneapolis Community and Technical College
Minnesota State College - Southeast Technical
Red Wing
Winona
Minnesota State Community and Technical College
Detroit Lakes
Fergus Falls
Moorhead
Wadena
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Minnesota West Community and Technical College:
Canby
Granite Falls
Jackson
Luverne
Pipestone
Worthington
Normandale Community College
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X

Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
Summary of Consultation Letters Regarding Tuition and Fees, FY2015 (Updated 6/6/14)
College/University submissions may contain Revenue Fund Letters not rated
SP-10
Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Neutral College/University
Northeast Higher Education District:
Hibbing Community College
Itasca Community College
Mesabi Range College
Rainy River Community College
Vermilion Community College
North Hennepin Community College
X
X
X
X
X
X
Northland Community and Technical College:
East Grand Forks
Thief River Falls
Northwest Technical College
Pine Technical & Community College
Ridgewater College:
Hutchinson
Willmar
Riverland Community College:
Albert Lea
Austin
Owatonna
Rochester Community and Technical College
St. Cloud State University
St. Cloud Technical and Community College
Saint Paul College
South Central College:
Faribault
North Mankato
Southwest Minnesota State University
Winona State University
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X

Anoka Technical College
Phone: (763) 576-7890
E-mail: kmaleski1@my.anokatech.edu
April 24, 2014
Chancellor Steven J. Rosenstone and Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 7th Street E.
Suite 350
St. Paul, MN 55101-7804
Dear Chancellor and Board of Trustees,
I am writing to you in regards to the tuition consultation process that took place over the last year at Anoka Technical College. President Kent Hanson and Vice President of Finance and
Administration Donald Lewis came to the Student Senate in the fall of 2013 and during the spring 2014 semesters. During each of our consultations they both were very transparent with us about the fact that enrollment is down not only within our campus, but system-wide.
President Hanson and Vice President of Finance and Administration Lewis helped us to understand that while we are in a shortfall in enrollment, it affects tuition income. They informed us that they are not going to be increasing fees for the coming year. After a consensus vote to not increase any fees for the coming year, I am proud to say that our consultation process went exceptionally well.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions or comments in regards to the tuition consultation process that took place at Anoka Technical College.
Sincerely,
Kerrie Maleski
Student Senate President
Anoka Technical College
E-mail: kmaleski1@my.anokatech.edu

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chair Hightower and Trustees:
As requested by MnSCU’s student consultation policy (Board policy 2.3), this letter will outline the tuition consultation process that recently took place at Anoka Ramsey Community College
Cambridge Campus.
Our senate met with ARCC administration to consult on the college budget on October 30 th
and
March 19 th
. These meetings were attended by President Kent Hanson, CFO Don Lewis, and the entire senate.
Background information was either handed out or presented to the senate via a PowerPoint presentation. The background information included detailed spreadsheets outlining both expenses and revenue. Another spreadsheet was shown to the senate outlining possible budgets for various tuition increases, ranging from a flat rate to 3% increase.
The Administration proposed no changes to any fees.
The consultation on the budget was sufficient for the senate to have a lengthy discussion about the proposal and to make an informed decision.
Our senate voted to work with the Administration to keep the fees as flat as possible because, any fee increases can be harmful to the students.
President Hanson has been very helpful to that cause and has been available to assist us in finding answers to any questions we have had.

We feel that our views and comments were taken in to consideration when the administration was deciding upon its budget and we felt that the consultation process was taken very seriously by both the students and the administration.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments regarding the Anoka
Ramsey Community College – Cambridge Campus tuition consultation process. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Yerko Besmalinovic, Student Government President, Ybesmalinovic@gmail.com

Board of Trustees
Office of the Chancellor
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul, MN 55101
To Chancellor Rosenstone and respected members of the Board of Trustees:
This letter is to address the tuition consultation process that has taken place at Anoka Ramsey Community
College in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. Unlike last year, the conversations between us and the administration have gone incredibly well, and I am looking forward to providing you the details.
The first conversation took place early in the fall, when CFO Don Lewis came to our Student Government meeting. He spent about 45 minutes with us discussing where the college was positioned financially, the variables they would be watching as the year progressed, and answered any questions that we presented.
We presented our plan. With tuition effectively frozen, we felt this would be a fantastic year to evaluate differential tuitions, class fees, and online differential along with the traditional student fees. This message went up to President Hanson as well. We were very curious how the administration would respond.
Within a few months, we not only received spreadsheets on all of the class fees and differential tuitions, but explanations as to why they were priced in such a manner. There was no hesitation in providing us the information or the explanations. I would like to personally thank Kelsey Schwarzrock, the ARCC Chief of Staff, for her due diligence in providing us that information.
The Revenue Fund Committee meetings went very well, as did the Student Life Fee committee. We face a challenge with the Athletics Fee, which the students felt was woefully underfunded to meet the needs of so many playoff-bound teams. The students want zero increase to tuition and fees, but feel the current funding to Athletics is not sustainable for the long term. This became a key part of the consultation that took place on February 26 th
with President Hanson and CFO Lewis.
Within a few minutes, we threw Robert’s Rules out the window, and had a fantastic conversation on not only the current state of the budget, but long term planning by the administration. The campus was looking at a $1.8-2.2 million dollar surplus, which could change depending on the funding that came from the state government. If the college had to utilize those funds to pay for salary increases, the surplus could go as low as $500,000. Regardless, there would be a surplus that would go into the reserves that are already at 30-31%, increasing it even further. As far as the fees went, they agreed with the students that none of them needed to be increased, but the numbers from the Athletic fee were a bit of an issue. The administration had no issue with picking up the tab for post-season play, but the students did not feel this would be a smart strategy. We asked them to look into the various fees to see if anything could be shift allocated in order to bolster the Athletics fee, and still keep a zero increase overall.
As I write this, the Parking and Athletic Fees are not settled. Certain members of the Parking Fee committee feel a $.50 decrease is not feasible, so this discussion has been tabled until further research can

be done. We will be re-convening the Athletic Fee committee to draft a motion that will align any decreases to the Parking fee with increases to the Athletic fee, thereby maintaining a zero increase overall.
The Technology Fee committee meets next week, and word is there will be no increases there.
In closing, I would like to formally recognize and personally thank President Kent Hanson, Vice
President of Finance Don Lewis, and all of the members of the administration at Anoka Ramsey
Community College in Coon Rapids. Their open door policy has proven to be an amazing system of communication, and led to the most effective tuition consultation process I have ever experienced in my time with MnSCU. They should be commended for their work, and the newly elected student leaders of our organization are looking forward to continuing these crucial conversations with them next year.
Sincerely,
Thomas Berg
President, Anoka Ramsey Coon Rapids Student Government

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chancellor Rosenstone and Trustees:
The Students of Central Lakes College Staples have been Properly consulted on tuition and fees.
Administration has meet with us on several occasions to talk to students about tuition and fees. We had one meeting in the fall to go over the basics of how tuition works. Then we had four meetings in
March to discuss more details of the current situation with tuition and different projects within the college, and where the legislative is at with different bills that affect the college. Our final meeting was a presentation to the student body in the commons at the college. In total administration took over ten hours meeting with the student body to consult. We were very pleased with the effort that administration has put forth in this process. We would like to give Kari Christenson a big thank you for her help in this process.
The students at Central Lakes College Staples balance the ideas that students are paying way too much for their education and that if they want the best education, but they have to pay for it. The continual decrease of state appropriation has turned most of the costs of higher education onto students. The main way to fix this problem is for state appropriation to increase. The Tuition freeze was talked about and its effects it has on the college. Even though this is great for students, it has disadvantages in the quality of programs and the amount of student services the college can provide.
Overall Central lakes College Student Senate understands the college situation from a finical perspective, and supports positive options to resolves these issues.
Thank you
Central Lakes College Staples Student Senate
Nick Weeks
President
Anna Stevens
Vice President
Colby Abazs
Secretary
Josh Hammer
Publicist
Bradley Wo i dyla
Director of communication

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chair Hightower and Trustees:
As requested by MnSCU’s student consultation policy (Board policy 2.3), this letter will outline the tuition consultation process that recently took place at Hennepin Technical College-Brooklyn Park campus.
Because of Temporary Suspension of the Student Senate and the reorganization issues this senate has found itself unable to have the consultation meetings that should have happened. With a newly elected president in place, we are unprepared to issue a solid point of view for this consultation.
The Student Senate meeting on April 23 rd
2014 where motions were made and votes taken concerning;
Administration proposed 3% student fees increase
Administration using student fees to pay partial or whole salaries’ of staff
Administration creating a subcommittee for a programming board.
The consultation on the proposed changes was sufficient for the senate to have a lengthy discussion about the proposal and to make an informed decision.
The senate would entertain additional discussion on matters relating to student used funds and student centered suggestions that administration has to offer in the future.
The Senate motioned and voted to oppose the increase of 3% in Student fees.
The Senate also motioned and voted against using Student fees to pay faculty or staff.
The Senate also motioned and voted against an additional subcommittee that is to be paid from student funds.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments regarding Hennepin Technical
College-Brooklyn Park consultation process.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Paula Pierce, Student Senate President,
Hennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park Campus
Hennepin /4/13 1:15 PM
9000 Brooklyn Boulevard  Brooklyn Park, Minnesota 55445-2399  763.488.2556

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chair Hightower and Trustees: April 18, 2014
As requested by MnSCU’s student consultation policy (Board policy 2.3), this letter will outline the tuition consultation process that recently took place at Hennepin
Technical College, Eden Prairie campus.
Our senate met with HTC-EP administration to consult on the college budget
January 15 & 27, 2014 and February 10, 2014 with President Cecilia Cervantes, VP
Administrative Services, Craig Erickson. Dean of Student Success, Dara Hagen and
VP Administrative Services, Craig Erickson further met with the Student Senate’s executive board for consultation meetings on April 16, 2014.
Background materials were provided; including a detailed PowerPoint with spreadsheet and bar graphs. The meeting took place at Eden Prairie campus and via
ITV conference with our sister campus of Brooklyn Park, Student Senate.
The Administration proposed a 3% student life fee increase for budget support of the Department of Student Life, the increase at 40 cents per credit= $12/yr for 30 credits; generating additional revenue of $45,276 on projected 4100 FYE for FY15.
Student Senate Eden Prairie held a forum to discuss the anticipated budget proposal
April 9, 2014 where the results were shared with administration during the April
16 th consultation. Administration welcomed the ideas given and took notes during the consultation.
Following the consultation, Dara Hagen was available for comments and emailed each member with the minutes regarding the consultation later that day.
Additionally, administration plans to survey students with Student Senate’s input before making program changes.
You may contact me if you have any questions or comments regarding Hennepin
Technical College Eden Prairie’s consultation.
Sincerely,
Lisa Zambrella, Student Senate Secretary
Student Life Board, Chair
Lzambrella001@my.hennepintech.edu

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chairman Hightower, and Board of Trustees,
My name is Brent Magee, I am the Student Senate President at Inver Hills Community College, and I am writing this letter about the tuition consultation process on behalf of the student body. We feel that the process was informative and satisfactory. The campus Chief Financial Officer Dee Bernard was very accessible during the process to explain various aspects of the budgeting process to us and personally to me.
Dee spoke to our Senate informing us on how the overall funding process works. A large percentage of our Student Senate body consisted of new members who have not being through a budgeting consultation process before. She and I both agreed that a more detail overview presentation was warranted. She explained how appropriations make their way to
MnSCU, and to our campus. She also explained that over the last several years, funding from the State has steadily declined. Dee also mention that we are under a Two year tuition freeze passed by the Mn legislator.
Our first intial meeting during the spring semester was a preliminary view as to factors that would determine which direction the budget will go. She also laid out historical information about the last couple of years of funding from the
State. Additionally, she told us that renovations were planned for the second floor of our Library building scheduled to start in May.
During our meetings on April 17 th
, Dee presented the budget outlook. She stated that as the Legislature was updating their forecasts, the school was adjusting our budgets to account for them. She also stated that the working budget for FY2015 was built upon certain assumptions: Staff\Faculty salaries were to increase once contracts were approved in the State .
Another assumption looked at was enrollment, and that enrollment is likely to decrease over the next year; this would reduce the revenue going into the college.
Overall, the process went well, and the Senate was pleased with the process. Dee was very open to questions and feedback, and concerns.
Dee also mention that the technology fee would be going up.. However, as senate we dislike that fee had to increase at all, however, we understand that for future budgetary health, it is necessary.
If there are any questions, comments or concerns from Chairman Hightower, the Board of Trustees, or any other involved party, please contact me.
Sincerely,
Brent Magee, Student Senate President sspresident@inverhills.edu

April 24, 2014
Steven J. Rosenstone, Chancellor
Minnesota State College and University System
500 World Trade Center
30 E. 7 th
Street
St. Paul, MN 55101
Dear Chancellor Rosenstone,
Consultation with students on the tuition recommendation for the FY15 academic year has occurred over the last six months during a variety of meetings with student senate from the
Winona campus. As student senate president of the Winona campus, I feel the students have been adequately consulted on the following matters:
Tuition
Michael Kroening, Vice President of Finance met several times with our student senate to discuss school budgets, anticipated state appropriation levels, and the need for tuition increases.
We discussed the impact of various levels of funding from the state and the resulting tuition increases that would be necessary at each level. We discussed total revenue needed for the college to adequately fulfill its mission and realized at current proposed state appropriation levels, no increase in FY15 would be necessary to balance the budget and address student needs adequately. As a student senate, we would support that option. Our student senate will continue to lobby for additional new money in hopes of keeping tuition increases to a minimum. This process has given us a better understanding of the struggles our college and students face as state funding continues to decline.
Student Fees
Student fees were also discussed and President Johnson has chosen to not raise any fees for
FY15.
We look forward to participation in this process again in the future.
Respectfully,
Wesley Durnen
Student Senate President
Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical, Winona Campus wesley.durnen@webmail.southeastmn.edu

Board of Trustees,
The purpose of this letter is to inform you of the student consultation process at Minnesota State University Moorhead. Thank you for allowing the students to have a voice in this complex process.
It is my belief, and the belief of our Student Senate, that the consultation process on campus, has been beyond satisfactory. In January, the Student Activity
Fee Review Committee began meeting. That committee had Student Senators, and numerous other student leaders that were appointed to it. Budget supervisors were then brought in to discuss each fee individually. After that, discussions were then had, and each fee had a separate vote. Students are the only people on the committee that are allowed a vote.
SAFRC recommendations are then sent onto Student Senate. Those recommendations are discussed at length, and then Senate forwards recommendations to the President’s office.
President Edna, then met with the SAFRC co-chairs, and myself, and discussed every fee individually. The differences between SAFRC and Student
Senate were also discussed at length.
The consultation process this year, has been nothing short of perfection. Each budget supervisor came into Student Senate to answer any and all questions that people had. Also, Administration met with Student Senate once a month to discuss any and all changes that were happening at MSUM. Student Consultation has been a priority all year, and our recommendations are always taken into consideration before a decision is made. Administrators, and budget supervisors are diligent when it comes to allowing students a voice.
Student Senate made the following recommendations.
 $.32 increase to the Student Union Facility Fee
 $.02 increase to the Event Fee
 $2.50 increase to the Sustainability Fee
 $.05 increase to the Intramurals and Club Sports Fee
If you have any further questions or comments please feel free to contact me by phone at 320-444-7686 or email at struxneske@mnstate.edu
Regards,
Kevin Struxness
Student Senate President
Minnesota State University Moorhead

Date: April 14, 2014
Chancellor Rosenstone & Board of Trustees,
This letter is to serve as an approval from the Minnesota State Student Association
(MSSA), as the official student association of Minnesota State University, Mankato, for the consultation process on the budget/rate request for the Centennial Student Union for FY15.
CSU administration has been wonderful to work with during the course of the year, and their efforts have, for as long as I have been involved with our student association, mirrored an approach of thoughtful transparency. Our Centennial Student Union Board meets with CSU staff, student board members and administration once per week during the entire academic year. This board serves to ensure the budgeting process and that
CSU fees are spent with fiscal responsibility.
The board has agreed not to pursue an increase in CSU facility fee for FY15 and the
Minnesota State Student Association voted in approval of this position.
Additionally, our new Director of the Centennial Student Union, Mr. Constantine, exhibits exactly the sort of student-centric leadership we, as student leaders, admire and respect. Often times we say of the staff and administration at MSU, Mankato, we quite simply have the best. And it is true here, that Mr. Constantine allows our students the freedom to make their own decisions while also providing the pieces of professional expertise when students request it.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact myself via email at
Christopher.collins@mnsu.edu.
With Maverick Pride,
Christopher Collins
President – 81 st Minnesota State Student Association

As required by MnSCU's student consultation policy, this letter is to inform you of the consultation process at Minnesota West Community & Technical College - Granite Falls
Campus.
The college administration did an excellent job of presenting the tuition schedule for the
2014-2015 school year to our student body.
The student senate understands the tuition and fees and appreciates that no increases are expected for the coming year.
Thank you for your time and consideration with the Minnesota West Community & Technical
College - Granite Falls campus student body.
Anne Freeman
Student Senate President - MN West Community & Technical College, Granite Falls
Business Professionals of America - Executive Vice President Minnesota BPA College Division, Local Vice
President
Phi Theta Kappa - Vice President serving Granite Falls Campus

April 16, 2014
Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing to inform you that as requested by MnSCU’s student consultation policy (Board policy 2.3), the student body at Minnesota West Community and Technical College- Pipestone campus have been informed and involved with the proposed college budget for the fiscal year 2015.
The tuition consultation was held on Tuesday, March 4 th
, and was attended by the student body, faculty and staff, Diana Fliss, Lori Voss, and Provost Dr. Jeff Williamson. Lunch was provided for those in attendance by the student senate. Diana Fliss presented to us a detailed powerpoint presentation which included financial health and planning, enrollment and allocation history, FY15 projections, and the current tuition rates. After the presentation the floor was opened for questions, all of which were answered very thoroughly.
The presentation was a very sufficient way to inform the students about the proposed budget and changes in accordance with the budget for FY15. The student senate feels that the consultation process was taken very seriously by both the student body and administration. However, the process could be more insightful and informative would be to have more of the student body in attendance. A day when more of the student body could attend would be informational. I would hope in the future that more could attend and ask any questions that might arise.
We, the student senate, appreciate the effort and time involved put forth to explain to the student body of the effects of this proposed budget and where allocation is awarded.
Feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns you may regarding the Minnesota West
Community and Technical College- Pipestone campus tuition consultation process. Thank you very much for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Student Senate President rv4969wf@live.mnwest.edu

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chair Hightower and Trustees:
As requested by MnSCU’s student consultation policy (Board policy 2.3), this letter will outline the tuition consultation process that recently took place at Minnesota State Community and Technical College, Detroit Lakes campus.
Our Student Government Association met with the college’s CFO, Pat Nordick, to consult on the whole college budget on December 19, 2013, February 24, 2014, and April 7,
2014. These meetings were attended by the Student Government Executive board, Student
Government Advisor, and Student Government Senators.
Background materials were provided to the student government, which included a detailed spreadsheet illustrating the budget impact of current enrollment and if the enrollment drops by 5%. Also, there was materials presented that outline the budget with and without the
MnSCU’s $17 Million bond that is still being discussed at the State Legislation. These materials were presented in a format that was fairly clear and user friendly.
Our senate did not have any opposition on the budget outline, since there is a Tuition
Freeze currently active.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments regarding
Minnesota State Community and Technical College, Detroit Lakes’ tuition consultation process.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
William J. Labart
President, Student Government Association
M-State Community and Technical College – Detroit Lakes
Email: William_labart@my.minnesota.edu

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chair Hightower and Trustees,
As required by MnSCU’s student consultation policy (Board Policy 2.3), this letter will outline the tuition and fee increases proposed by MState Fergus Falls administration, as well as cost cutting suggestions that were presented to the MState Fergus Falls Student Senate during the 2013-2014 academic year. This letter will also include senate opinions and recommendations concerning the information provided in these suggestions.
Four budget consultations took place on the Fergus Falls campus attended by members of the student senate and presented by MState CFO Pat Nordick. Mr. Nordick was prompt and considerate when scheduling these meetings and our senate would like to recognize his efforts to keep us informed. Our final consultation took place April 15 th
and presented us with plans for the 2014-2015 fiscal year as well as answered questions concerning future possible increases or fee changes.
Background materials were provided at each meeting ensuring that each student would be aware of the fiscal standing of Mstate and the Fergus Falls campus. The administration proposed no changes to the 2014-2015 year in compliance with the current tuition freeze. The administration did include possible future changes including an increase of parking fees from 2$ per credit to 4$ per credit. This may be applied incrementally.
Administration also indicated that plans for post freeze tuition would be to increase tuition by approximately
3% per year after the freeze. The administration also introduced cost cutting measures including reducing hours of the campus bookstore, and creating an electronic meeting room to reduce travel expenses.
The Student Senate has reviewed theses possible changes and concluded the following; a parking lot fee increase would be seen across all 4 campuses but the additional revenue would be used on a rotational basis and the additional fees paid by the student may not ever see the effect of those monies on their campus during their time there, it does not surprise the students that tuition will be increased but encourages the administration to show restraint so that another tuition freeze will not have to be asked for, and the senate encourages the use of technology to reduce the significant travel expenses accrued across our multi campus system as well as the reduction in bookstore hours. The Student Senate would also like to thank our administration for looking forward to increased enrollment through the use of grant funding.
Again the Student Senate of the MState Fergus Falls campus would like to thank our CFO Pat Nordick for his timely and complete consultations and look forward to working with him in the future.
Sincerely,
John Hermann
MState Fergus Falls Student Senate President

April 14, 2014
Chancellor Dr. Steven Rosenstone and Board of Trustees,
Minnesota State Colleges & Universities
Wells Fargo Place
30 7th St. E. Suite 350
St. Paul, MN 55101-7804
Dear Dr. Rosenstone and Trustees,
It is a great privilege to write this letter outlining the budget consultation process that took place at Normandale
Community College during this academic year, 2013-2014. The process complied with MnSCU’s Board policy 2.3.
During the fall semester, the President of Student Senate at Normandale was Luke Bolter and the Vice President of
Finance was Ed Wines. There has been a change in roles this semester and I am the President of Student Senate and
Lisa Wheeler is now the Interim Vice President of Finance. Even with the transition and readjustment of roles, the budget process still remains very clear and consistent.
Early in the fall 2013 semester, Luke Bolter held consistent meetings with Ed Wines and Dr. Joseph Opatz about the budget. At the start of the consultation process, there has always been open communication given to the Senate by
Joe and Ed regarding the budgeting process. This has continued into the spring 2014 semester, where I have the pleasure of consulting with both Joe Opatz and Lisa Wheeler. Open communication has stayed the way it was, if not improved, via informational emails from Lisa Wheeler.
The budget consultation had been presented to the senate three times and there is still one report that will be presented to the Senate.
With two presentations spread out per semesters, students are able to ask questions and receive the answers in a timely manner. Since the budget has not been finalized completely, Dr. Opatz has generously offered to submit a report to the senate when permitted. Considering the budget will not be finalized until after school is out of session, the senate has decided to support the overall budget that was presented at the last meeting on April 1st.
There was only one area that had an increase, which was the Kopp Student Center fee by $.50 making it $7.50, while everything else remains frozen at the same rates. Tuition was frozen at the FY14 rate, which is always a good thing for students. The increase in the Kopp fee would not greatly affect students. In the presentation, President
Opatz illustrated how this would reflect in a student taking a 30 credit load per year; their tuition would increase from $5694.00 to $5709.00. Additionally, the enrollment for the FY15 is projected at 6,750 a little higher than
FY14, 6,738.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns regarding Normandale’s consultation process or anything else I have mentioned in this letter. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Tenzing Sangmo
Student Senate President of Normandale Community College
Tenzing.Sangmo@normandale.edu
952/358-8286

Dear Chancellor Rosenstone,
I am writing to outline the tuition consultation process at North Hennepin Community College in the 2013 – 2014 academic year. With a tuition freeze, there wasn’t any discussion about increases in tuition this year. Fees will also be held flat, with some actually being eliminated.
The college also has worked hard to utilize smart budgeting and replacement strategies to offset the increases in expenses that are unavoidable.
The nature of our discussions this year did have some definite structure. Conversations with the full student senate occurred twice in the fall and three times this spring. The initial conversation detailed the fall enrollment projections as well as the potential impact of different final numbers.
President Larson and CFFO Hall outlined the current college budget and how different cost centers will be shifted to accommodate the current tuition and enrollment scenarios. Throughout the year, we were both formally and informally updated on these topics. Courses of action suggested in the fall are being followed this spring.
An interesting note that I would like to add relates to our last meeting. Having clearly outlined the budget picture and enrollment scenarios, the administration went beyond the call of duty.
The final presentation included a look at the executive level planning documents relating to the budget and facilities operations. It was a great perspective to offer students on the executive decision making process. This college administration continues to lead the system in providing information transparently and efficiently. We as students are truly blessed to have them.
Sincerely,
Richard Barnier
President
NHCC Student Senate
7411 85th Avenue North, Brooklyn Park, MN 55445 senatepresident@nhcc.edu | Office (763) 424-0562 | Cell (612) 868-1454

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East Seventh Street
St. Paul MN 55101
Chair Rosenstone and Trustees:
As requested by MnSCU’s student consultation policy (Board policy 2.3), this letter will outline the tuition consultation process that recently took place at Northland Community and Technical College-
East Grand Forks campus.
Our senate met with NCTC administration to consult on the college budget on February 26 th
and March
19 th
. These meetings were attended by President Anne Temte, CFO Shannon Jesme, and the senate’s executive board. The budget proposal was also discussed with the students on March 20 th
.
Background materials were provided outlining possible situations that were dependent on enrollment numbers and possible additional funding provided by the system.
The Administration is not asking for any increase in tuition or fees for students. The reasoning for not raising tuition is due to the current tuition freeze. They are not asking for any increase in fees because the fees have been raised consistently over the past three years.
The consultation regarding the budget was very vague. The Administration did not have any concrete numbers to reflect accurately how the budget will be built. There was talk that some services and/or courses may be cut, but without accurate numbers, there is no clear path.
Our senate voted to approve support of not raising tuition and fees. We believe this will help students continue to remain in college, and prospective students to be able to afford a higher education.
President Temte made herself available at any time for comments or questions. Questions that were asked regarding potential reduction in courses or services were answered with vague responses due to not having accurate numbers.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments regarding Northland Community and Technical College-East Grand Forks’ tuition consultation process.
Sincerely,
Kasandra Klinkhammer
Student Senate President
Kasandra_Klinkhammer2@student.northlandcollege.edu

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East 7 th
Street
St. Paul, MN 55101
Chair Hightower and Trustees,
This letter will be a brief report of the tuition consultation process which has taken place at Pine
Technical College as requested by MnSCU policy 2.3, for FY 2013-2014.
Consultation on tuition and the overall budget has taken place throughout the year between myself and
Dr. Robert Musgrove, President of Pine Technical College, and was finalized in a meeting on March 6 th
,
2014 after which a summary was delivered to our Student Senate on March 19 th ,2014. Due to the tuition freeze in place for FY 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 discussion was short but informative. No increase in student fees are planned and the Senate was informed of that also. As there were no increases, no vote to approve the process was needed.
Dr. Musgrove and the PTC administration have always made themselves available for questions and are quick to respond with answers, they have been open and helpful. I feel that we were all well informed and have been made an important part of this process.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding tuition consultation at Pine Technical
College.
Thank You,
Tim Soderbeck
Student Senate President
Pine Technical College soderbeckt@pinetech.edu

Board of Trustees
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
500 Wells Fargo Place
30 East 70th Street
St. Paul, MN 55101
Chancellor Rosenstone and Trustees:
April 21, 2014
As per MNSCU student consultation policy, this letter is a summary of the budget consultation that took place at Ridgewater College, Willmar campus.
CFO Dan Holtz presented an overview of the fiscal year 2014 and preliminary 2015 budget during the
Exchange of Views meeting on February 20, 2014. He also gave a presentation of the FY2014 and 2015 budgets during our student senate meeting on April 16, 2014. CFO Dan Holtz provided a power point presentation with a detailed spreadsheet which he went over thoroughly to give us a better understanding of the budget process. He also illustrated in graphs the trending of income and expenditures so that we could better understand what the future budget will look like. CFO Holtz encouraged us to take an active role in coming up with ideas to improve the FYE on our campus which will strengthen our bottom line. He also left us his business card and encouraged us to contact him if we had further questions or ideas for him.
President Allen and CFO Holtz have made themselves available to us and have encouraged us to participate in the budget process as well as the steering committee for Charting The Future . They have also applauded our efforts in supporting the system’s capital budget request. We are aware of the tuition freeze and have agreed to the proposed increase of fifty cents for student life fees.
The Student Senate of Ridgewater College, Willmar campus feels that we have had a good budget consultation process this year. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments regarding our budget consultation process.
Sincerely,
Nora Medina & Brittney Stager
Student Senate, President gaminomedinanor@go.ridgewater.edu

May 12, 2014
Chancellor Steven J. Rosenstone
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
30 7 th
St. E. Suite 350
St. Paul, MN 55101
Chancellor Rosenstone,
I am writing this letter as requested by MnSCU’s consultation policy. Tuition and fee consultation has taken place in a very open and frank manner. I have had multiple conversations with President Gores dating back to January about this matter. With this, the
Student Association and Presidents Cabinet had discussions on this matter every month since
January during Meet and Discuss (January 30, February 18, March 25, April 29). Both parties were open with each other and great discussions were had about the financial situation of the institution.
While initial conversations about tuition and fees started in January, the Student Association felt it would be premature to send this letter prior to the all-university budget meeting on May
1, 2014. To help solve the University’s budget deficit, it was proposed to raise graduate tuition by 2.5%. Initially, the Student Association took a stance opposed to raising graduate tuition.
However, after the new budget solutions for FY15 was released in April, the Student
Association felt that compromises had been made and voted to support raising graduate tuition
(May 1, 2014). The motion added that, “While we don’t believe in raising tuition, we understand that sometimes it may be necessary.”
Being that undergraduate tuition is frozen, there was essentially no need to have those discussions. The Student Association did support some of these fee increases. One of which was a 3% increase in the room and board rate (March 27, 2014). Considering that in the previous fiscal year the room and board rate dropped, the Student Association had no problem with this increase.
I would like to reiterate that consultation went extremely well this year. The President and her
Cabinet were very transparent and forthcoming on this subject. While I understand this letter

may be late, I could not in good conscience send it before the final budget solutions were presented. If there are any question on this matter, please feel free to contact myself.
Regards,
Joshua L. Anderson
Southwest Minnesota State University Student Association President
CC: Dr. Connie J. Gores, SMSU President
Mr. Scott Crowell, SMSU Associate Vice President of Student Affairs

To:
From:
Chancellor Steven Rosenstone
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
Eric D. Petersen
Student Government President
Date:
Subject:
Friday, April 11, 2014
Consultation on the Residential Hall Room and Board Rates for FY15
MnSCU Board Policy 2.3 calls for student involvement in decision-making when issues have a significant impact on students. This memo outlines the consultation that the St. Cloud State University Student
Government received regarding the room and board rates for the Residence Halls at St. Cloud State
University.
At the March 6, 2014 Student Government Senate meeting, Dan Pedersen, Director of Residential Life presented to the Senate the new room and board rates for the upcoming year. The presentation outlined the new rates which included a comparison from this year and the different rates for the different halls. There is an approximate 4.49% increase to the standard double room and meal plan rate, and a 2% increase for the Coborn’s Plaza Apartments. This is the first increase in Coborn’s Plaza
Apartments in three years. The Director also updated the Student Association on the continued construction for the renovation of Shoemaker East and West set to open for Fall 2014.
The Student Association at St. Cloud State University is satisfied with the level of consultation we have received regarding the new room and board rates for the residence halls. The Director of Residential
Life has been available to answer questions regarding the rates and has been very helpful. The Student
Association looks forward to continuing consultations as we move forward throughout the years. Please feel free to contact me with any questions you have.
Cc: Earl H. Potter III, President
Wanda Overland, VP of Student Life and Development
Tammy McGee, VP of Finance and Administration
Dan Pedersen, Director of Residential Life
Wanda Overland, Student Government Advisor

April 28, 2013
Chancellor Steven Rosenstone
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
30 East Seventh Street, Suite 350
Saint Paul, MN 55101
Chancellor Rosenstone & Board of Trustees,
I am writing this letter today as requested under MnSCU Board Policy 2.3, student involvement in decision-making. The Winona State University Student Senate (WSUSS) has been properly consulted throughout the year by administration regarding all fees on campus and we feel our voice has been properly heard by our university. Below you will find the recommendations that were passed by the Student Fee Management Committee (SFMC) and WSUSS.

0% increase to the technology fee

0% increase to the wellness fee

11.3% increase to health services fee

0% increase to tuition

3.06 % increase to athletics fee

1% increase to student life fee

0% increase to student union fee

0% increase to housing fee and 2.25% increase to dining fee
Sincerely,
Timothy W. Comes
Student Senate President