Student Technology Fees Position Statement

The Senate Committee on Information Technologies (SCIT) requests that the final proposal for any new student technology fees structure be brought before SCIT prior to going forward for Board of Regents approval. The committee wishes to applaud the colleges for their existing work to create procedures and feedback mechanisms for the current college-based student technology fees structures. They have carefully worked to create cost-neutral plans with clear involvement of students both in the setting of fees and in reporting results and gathering feedback for future planning.

However, the current system has become unnecessarily complicated and dysfunctional.

SCIT members strongly support the creation of a new system-wide structure that would rationalize and consolidate fees structures, while maintaining strong input and feedback from affected students.

SCIT would suggest that the final proposal or any new proposal be brought before not only SCIT for review and consultation but also the Student Senate and the colleges before final submission to the Board of Regents. This will only strengthen the proposal itself and insure future cooperation.

Colleges play a key role in this process. Consultation will allow for exploring strategies and discussion/creation of plans to insure revenue neutrality now and in the future, and for relating technology fees to other college fees and issues (such as laptop requirements).

Students, as both beneficiaries and sources for these funds, deserve to have a clear voice in the establishment of this fee structure. The Student Senate would be an appropriate venue for this input.

SCIT has an ongoing interest in student technology fees and their implementation across the University system: The impact on students; fee structures and implementation issues; and the impact of these fees on colleges, especially with the constant changes in technology. SCIT would request that reports on student technology fees be made to the committee, on an ongoing basis, for discussion/review at least every two years.