College Charges

The charges for tuition, room, and board have a habit of going up every year, but this year, because of the Trustees' decision in February to comply with President Carter's inflation guidelines, the increases will be less than expected. The formula for figuring the charges limits the increase in Dartmouth's case to 7.56 per cent, which, according to a statement by President Kemeny, "is well below the figure contained in our long-range plan and creates a significant budgetary problem."

The tuition for fall, winter, and spring terms will increase by $150 each term, bringing the present total of $4,920 to $5,370, a "normal" increase offset by lesser increases in average room and board charges. ("As has become customary," President Kemeny added, "summer tuition each year will be the same as in the previous academic year, to encourage maximum attendance.") A $20 per-term increase in room charges brings the three- term total to $1,035, and board charges are up $10 each term to a total of $1,280. The combined fall, winter, and spring bill for tuition, room, and board next year will be $7,685.

Kemeny pointed out that some of our "sister institutions" have exceeded Carter's guidelines on the basis of an argument that running at a deficit permits an exception. Dartmouth is taking a stand, he said, because talk about inflation as the "single greatest threat to the survival of private higher education" doesn't amount to much "if one is not willing to support anti- inflation measures when they hurt." Where the anti-inflation measures don't hurt quite so badly is in how they apply to compensation increases for the faculty and staff. Kemeny said the guidelines "roughly agreed" with what the College already had in mind.