Frustrations finally boiled over. Students holding signs saying, “When will the price be right?” and “Silenced again,” marched out of the Board of Trustees meeting March 4 in an act of defiance against University of Oregon administration.

“We’re not willing to work with you if you’re not willing to work with us,” ASUO Finance Director Shawn Stevenson said before he led students out of the board meeting.

This was the last effort of ASUO and supporting students to prevent tuition from going up 4.5 and 4.7 percent for resident and nonresident students respectively. After they left, the Board of Trustees passed the tuition hike 11-3.

Resident student tuition at UO has increased 80 percent over the last 10 years. In 2006-07, annual resident tuition was $5,970. Next year, it will be $10,771.

This is the second year in a row students protested against tuition hikes at a board meeting. With no clear end to this yearly frustration, the future raises a swarm of questions.

ASUO finance director Shawn Stevenson speaks to the Board of Trustees on March 4. (Samuel Marshall/Emerald)

The financial future for graduates

Vickie Gimm, a UO student, took the Board of Trustees’ stage during the time allotted for public comment and read dozens of testimonies from other UO students.

“I am a student who is below the poverty level and can’t afford a tuition increase like this,” read one testimony. Other students voiced similar concerns: Raising tuition would make it harder or impossible to stay at UO.

But on average, students who take on more student debt tend to be more capable of paying off their loans, said UO associate economics professor Benjamin Hansen, who specializes in education and cited national research. Just 18 percent of those borrowing more than $100,000 default on their loans, as opposed to 34 percent of those borrowing under $5,000.

“The real problem with student loans isn’t really the amount of student debt people have,” Hansen said in an interview before the Board of Trustees meeting, “It seems to be more of an issue of what income they have when they graduate.”

More than half of the money from tuition increases goes toward funding research and hiring more tenure-track faculty. Hansen sees this as an effort to provide students with a better education so they can graduate sooner and be placed into higher-income jobs. According to a 2014 study published by the American Community Survey, Americans with bachelor’s degrees earned an average of $50,515 over a 12-month period compared to $27,868 for those with just a high school diploma.

The Board of Trustees meeting discussing a possible University of Oregon tuition increase took place at the Ford Alumni Center in Eugene, Oregon on March 4, 2016. (Samuel Marshall/Emerald)

Hansen thinks students should look at debt as an investment. Though debt affects him as a young professional still paying off loans, Hansen looks at the wider issue.

“The average person that ends up with like $200,000 in student loans might be a dentist or doctor,” Hansen said. “They would view that as a necessary expense to get the training that they needed. They would get a high enough income where they could afford those loans.”

Student loans are the best kind of debt to have, Hansen said, because of the time frame. Hansen’s student loan interest rate was about 5 percent, and his loan payments are tax deductible, something he takes advantage of.

“[Five percent] is pretty much the same interest rate as my mortgage,” Hansen said. “So I should be in no more of a rush to pay my student loans off than I am to pay off my mortgage on my house.”

If Hansen lost his income and job, the bank wouldn’t grant a deferment period for paying off his mortgage, but the government would allow that for his student loans. Hansen said that, if anything, he is in more of a rush to pay off his mortgage because of this.

“I’ve put student loans on the longest repayment scheme that I possibly can,” Hansen said.

The financial future for UO

President Michael Schill addresses the Board of Trustees and others on March 4. Schill believes raising tuition is the only sustainable solution to reaching the university’s goal. (Samuel Marshall/Emerald)

UO President Michael Schill said the financial situation at UO is not going to get better anytime soon. Obligations from the Public Employee Retirement System go into effect in UO’s budget in 2018, adding an estimated $6-8 million to the university’s expenses.

The projected budget for 2018 is $26.5 million compared to $17.5 million in 2016, according to Vice President of Finance and Administration Jamie Moffitt, who gave a presentation on the budget situation at the board meeting.  

But the board can’t keep pushing those costs onto students, said Kurt Willcox, a trustee who represents university employees who aren’t teachers or students.

Kurt Willcox, non-faculty staff representative, speaks to the Board of Trustees on March 4. Willcox suggested the university look to other sources to help fund next year’s budget. (Samuel Marshall/Emerald)

Willcox believes that money can be allocated from other sources besides students in the future. He wants to use $2 million from $76 million worth of Unrestricted Net Assets — resources that may be used at the discretion of the president’s office and not the Board of Trustees. He proposed finding creative ways to draw some money from the $1 billion in the UO Foundation’s assets and employing funds from $200 million worth of private donations.

Willcox said that although the UO Foundation’s assets are restricted, they are the ones that can “solicit and find the money.” He supports a number of state legislative initiatives to address the problem.

President Schill strongly disagreed.

“It is irresponsible to say, ‘Let’s just take a year and hope and pray that there’s a valid initiative that’s successful and helpful,’ ’’ Schill said.

Ann Curry speaks to the Board of Trustees during the Board of Trustees meeting on March 4. Curry was one of three trustees to go against the rest and vote no on the tuition hike. (Samuel Marshall/Emerald)

Ann Curry, William Paustian and Willcox were the only ones to vote in favor of this alternative plan against 11 other trustees.

“If we don’t try and push and stretch some of the resources we have, we’re not going to be in a position where we can impact the tuition arrangement,” Willcox said after the meeting.

The future of rising tuition

Hansen said forecasting tuition increases is a challenge, but he predicted tuition may continue to go up at UO. In the job market, the value of a college education has gone up. That means graduates are able to earn higher salaries than in previous years. It also means that more people will be pursuing college degrees, and as the demand for college goes up, so will tuition.

“The value that’s attached to a college degree is higher than ever,” Hansen says, “If that value keeps on going up, that does tend to put upward pressure on the demand for education.”

For Willcox, the proposed “A Better Oregon” initiative is the best hope to stall tuition hikes. The measure would impose a gross receipts tax on large corporations. He says that the money gained from that measure could be used to fund higher education, lowering tuition increases. The first step is getting the measure on the ballot in November, something he believes is likely.

He fears the consequences of not taking that kind of action.

“We’re going to have to go back to tuition and keep raising it and raising it,” Willcox said, “That’s not sustainable.”

Students protesting the tuition hike on March 4. (Samuel Marshall/Emerald)

A woman who was found dead near the Willamette River in Eugene was identified by Eugene police as 24-year-old Rachel Lee Lynch.

The body was initially found on February 20th at the west bank of the river, and Eugene police identified her as Jane Doe, the Register-Guard reports. Police learned her true identity by studying surveillance images of her February 16th visit to Safeway on Coburg Road.

Rachel Lynch was not a Eugene resident and was visiting from Chester County, PA. Jennifer Lynch, her stepmother, says she didn’t know her daughter was in Eugene, but added that her boyfriend isolated and manipulated Rachel Lynch.

“She made one bad decision, she trusted the wrong person and it took her across the country,” Jennifer Lynch told the Register-Guard via telephone, “It took her life.”

Jennifer Lynch, nor the rest of the family, have alleged that the anonymous boyfriend committed the crime, rather saying he held an emotional sway over her.

Eugene police say they have no suspects or persons of interests in the case, adding that they have talked to the boyfriend.

Because toxology tests have not been completed, an official cause of death has not been established.

Non-tenured members of the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences faculty found out Monday that 79 of their colleagues will not return for the 2016-2017 academic year, according to the Register-Guard.

Contract nonrenewals were issued on Monday. The decision is reportedly part of UO President Michael Schill’s plan to realign the university’s priorities toward hiring tenure track faculty and helping students graduate on time.

Schill aims to hire 100 tenured-track faculty in the next five years.

Each of the 79, non-returning faculty members were a part of the College of Arts and Sciences. According to UO Provost Scott Coltrane, other schools on campus will probably see similar faculty cuts, especially in business and journalism.

Close to 60 percent of the removals came from the humanities department, and the rest largely came from the natural and social sciences.

This decision comes days before the Board of Trustees meeting on Thursday, where Schill was expected to address non-tenured track employment.

From 2008 to 2012, enrollment increased from 20,000 to 25,000, placing a larger load on non-tenured faculty. But since then, enrollment has leveled out.

“We need to make sure our tenure related faculty are doing the bulk of instruction,” Coltrane told the Register-Guard. “That’s what our peers do. We’re trying to get back to the ratios we had in 2008.”

A man attempted to rob a University of Oregon student just before midnight on Thursday, according to a UOPD crime alert. Police said the suspect is still at large.

The suspect is described as a white male between 21 and 26 years old with a “clean-cut” appearance. He reportedly wore a black and/or blue hooded sweatshirt with white draw cords, light-colored short jeans or long shorts, pulled-up white socks and black shoes.

The student reported to police that the man demanded valuables but did not threaten him with a weapon or “make a specific threat.” The UO student fled on foot, while the suspect was last seen heading heading east, according to UOPD. A bystander reportedly saw a man matching the suspect’s description near 17th Avenue and Fairmount Boulevard.

UO Police searched the area with assistance from Eugene Police with a K-9 unit. The suspect could not be found, and the investigation is ongoing.

A UOAlert! text informed students of the incident just before 1 a.m. Friday.

Unanimous efficiency was a key theme for the University of Oregon Senate on Wednesday. Members and officers of the senate passed all three proposed motions, in addition to opening up discussion for a fourth potential policy change. Here are the details of the two hour meeting.

A new degree program
The senate unanimously passed the first order of business: the introduction of a new graduate program. The Master of Science in Sports Product Design was proposed by the Product and Design Program for the School of Architecture and Allied Arts.

“We think that the program represents another important applied masters degree program because of its particular subject matter,” Graduate School Dean Scott Pratt said to the senate. “Its location in Portland will add to the range of degree programs we currently offer there.”

Members of the senate agreed, approving the recommendation of the General Council and Graduate School unanimously.

The program will combine courses from Human Physiology, Journalism, Business and Management and Product Design. The two year program comprises of 58 credits. It will offer graduate students the opportunity to “learn product design theories and research methodologies, innovative product development processes, sustainability, user-centered design principles and consumer-focused marketing strategies in order to innovate new product in the field of sports,” according to the program’s overview.

The complete proposal of the program is available here.

A policy revision
After a brief, unanimously-approved proposal to add a non-voting member from the Committee on Courses to the Graduate Council, the senate moved on to the issue of posthumous degrees.

The Senate Executive Committee proposed a notion that would award posthumous degrees in “a timely fashion”. Although degrees are sometimes are awarded to deceased students, this proposal would simplify the process.

“There was a lot of procedural detail in there that made it difficult for any policy users,” Senate President Randy Sullivan said, jokingly adding, “particularly deceased ones.”

The new policy would allow deceased students to posthumorously recieve their degree if they were within two terms of graduating. The senate unanimously approved the policy, which can be read here.

Open Discussion
In the latter half of the meeting, the UO senate opened a fourth proposal for discussion that was not voted on. It would make an emergency policy, which describes various regulations regarding student health confidentiality, permanent. Kevin Reed emphasized that this revised policy “tweaked” concerns raised by members of the University Health Center.

With a few exceptions, such as when the UO needs to access records to defend itself in a lawsuit, “University officials will forgo access without a stipulated protective order that the client/patient has signed, a written authorization from the client/patient to use the records, or a court order,” according to the policy proposal.

Full details regarding student confidentiality can be read here.

The meeting was adjourned early after it was determined that Faculty Athletic Representative Tim Gleason did not have enough time to give a report. The next UO Senate meeting is scheduled for March 9th.

The Robert D. Clark Honors College will vacate Chapman Hall this summer in preparation for interior remodeling of the building, according to Around the O.

During remodeling, which is estimated to last until December 2017, the honors college will relocate to McArthur Court.

The University of Oregon cites the lack of an interior stairwell as reason to proceed with the Chapman Hall renovations. In addition, the university said that the classroom sizes are inadequate for small, discussion based settings.

In the meantime, McArthur Court will be retrofitted to allow for classrooms, a library, a computer lab, study areas and other accommodations that replicate the current facilities at Chapman Hall, according to the report.

Funded by friends and parents of the college, alumni and an Oregon Legislator-approved bond measure, the budget for the project is estimated at $10.5 million. Fortis Construction, a general firm that also worked on Straub Hall, will collaborate with architecture firm Hennebery Eddy to work on the project.

Eugene police is investigating a burglary in which a 21-year-old woman awoke to find a man rubbing her leg in Eugene’s West University Neighborhood early Friday morning, according to Eugene police.

The intruder reportedly broke into the woman’s apartment on the 1500 block of Mill Street on Friday at 4:50 a.m.

Her roommate reported the incident and that the man fled after the woman threatened him with pepper spray to the Eugene Police Department according to the EPD personal safety report.

The intruder is described as a black male in his 20s. He wore a black or blue ball cap, a red, long sleeve shirt or jacket and blue jeans, police said.

In light of the incident, police are reminding residents to lock their doors as a precaution.

As the University of Oregon gears up for the 2021 World Track and Field Championships, the UO Board of Trustees thinks the cell phone tower at Hayward Field has got to go.

The Board of Trustees met over conference call for an emergency session on Feb. 18 to decide the fate of the tower. Despite two members being absent, the 15-person board unanimously decided that the UO should use eminent domain to move the SBA Communications cell phone tower if negotiations cannot be made. The power of eminent domain would grant UO the right to condemn private property because it would benefit the public interest.

“This is necessary for the public interest,” UO General Counsel Kevin Reed told the board. “This resolution has been planned, designed and located in a manner that is designed to be the most compatible with the greatest public good and the least injuring of private parties.”

The UO Foundation will cover the cost it takes to demolish the current 120-foot tower and build a new one just outside Hayward Field. Its budget allows for up to $1 million toward the project.

“We are doing our best to make [SBA Communications] believe it’s a good deal for them,” Reed said.

The board set up the emergency meeting due to an approaching deadline. The cell phone tower is scheduled to be demolished on Aug. 1, 2016.

Reed felt that forcing SBA out may not be necessary if the two parties can reach a mutual agreement. Negotiations have been ongoing since August 2015.

“We have not been able to finalize those negotiations – although we are very close,” Reed said. “However, we have been very close to a deal several times only to have everything fall apart.”

Although Reed remained confident that an agreement can be made, he still found the decision to use eminent domain necessary. He declined to comment on what has stalled negotiations in the past because those details are “sensitive to describe in a public meeting.”

UO President Michael Schill attended the meeting and noted that he had received no public backlash from the proposal. He referenced a Register-Guard article that drew little complaints.

Notices have been sent out to the surrounding neighborhoods where the new tower would be, said Matt Roberts, UO’s senior director of community relations.

“We haven’t had any negative feedback from them,” Roberts said.

Coming to a mutual agreement or using condemnation power, either way, marks the next step in Hayward Field’s renovation. The current plan is to upgrade seating to support up to 30,000 more attendees prior to the IAAF World Championships in 2021. That upgrade would be stalled if the tower stayed at its current location adjacent to the west grandstands.

Sprint Communications initially leased the space in December 2004. It was sold to SBA Communications in 2008. If the lease stands, SBA would own the tower through 2029.

A vehicle pursuit that started in Springfield ended near the UO campus last night, and a suspect is still at large, police said.

Ryan Bird, 31, is wanted by Springfield police after leading SPD on a roughly 15-minute car chase. The pursuit ended on 16th and Ferry in Eugene late Saturday night (Photo courtesy of the Springfield Police Department).

Ryan Bird, 31, fled police in a stolen, silver Subaru Forester at 10:23 p.m. on Saturday, Springfield Police Department Sgt. Michael McCarthy said.

SPD initially stopped Bird near Pioneer Parkway and Hayden Bridge Road after noticing that his license plate was bent and unreadable. Once they approached the vehicle, which they later realized was stolen, the man fled.

Bird led police along Beltline Road before he took an exit on Interstate 105. After exiting toward Coburg Road, he eventually ended up near the UO campus. Once the pursuit arrived near campus, police lost sight of the vehicle momentarily.

“[Police] didn’t want to go full speed near the campus area,” Sgt. McCarthy said.

Students in the area pointed police in the right direction, McCarthy said. Officers eventually found the vehicle parked between two other cars on 16th Avenue and Ferry Road. When police approached the car, Bird then left the vehicle and fled on foot.

Roughly 15 minutes after the chase began in Springfield, SPD then called in K-9 units to search, but they lost his scent because of the number of people in the area, McCarthy said. The Eugene Police Department and UOPD also helped with the search.

At this time, Bird is wanted by police, who said he is not an immediate threat to the public.

Here is a rough estimate of the route last night’s pursuit took:

As college affordability rises as a primary issue for students, Oregon Treasurer Ted Wheeler says that Oregon’s 529 program is allowing “more families than ever” to save money for college.

“Higher education and advanced job training are critical in today’s economy, and the Oregon 529 program is putting more options in reach for more Oregonians,” said Wheeler in a news release on Friday.

The Oregon State Treasury manages the Oregon 529 Savings Network, which has reported a record-setting $2.4 million worth of assets in 2015. Family members who put money into the plan have benefited 159,670 students.

The 529 plan allows family members to put money toward a beneficiary’s college tuition or other school related costs. Any earnings put in the plan are free from federal tax.

Ted Wheeler was appointed Oregon treasurer in in 2010 and has doubled financial assets since he took office.