A recent report found the University is doing a good job at spending some student fees for the purposes they were created.
The University appears to be taking a step in the right direction in spending student fees responsibly and truthfully.
According to a report released by the Office of State Inspector General, the University spends 10 percent of student technology fees on student wages. Other schools spend a much higher percentage of technology fees on costs not directly related to technology.
We laud the University for doing much better in the spending of the technology fee than other institutions in the state. Other state schools have been spending the fee in large amounts on costs like salaries for faculty members, student workers and staff members.
Other state institutions do not meet the requirements set by the their respective systems.
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette does not meet the guidelines of the University of Louisiana System. ULL allocated 16 percent of the 25 percent limit recommended by the system.
Southern University in Baton Rouge allocated 57 percent of their technology fee revenue to fund salaries, which is well above the 50 percent the system allows.
Louisiana State University at Shreveport does not have a limit on how much of the student technology fees it can use to support salaries, but the school expended 67 percent of its student technology fees to support salaries.
According to the report, state officials mandate that students not pay more than $100 for a technology fee at state institutions. The University has set a statewide example setting their own cap at $75.
While the University seems to have served as a prudent investor in its students’ technology fee, we encourage and hope the institution continues to spend other fees in an equally prudent fashion. The institution should pursue other avenues of revenue besides forcing a heavy burden upon its students.
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