[La-cgs] Senate Bill 76

[Ramu Ramachandran]

Mary:

Your analysis is very astute. I hope that "mandatory" is interpreted in 
the narrow sense -- i.e., as fees paid by EVERYONE (undergrad and grad, 
international and domestic).

Our fees are high. A graduate student taking a full load (which is 6 
hours in our quarter calendar) pays $961 in mandatory fees per term 
(~$2,900 per academic year). So, the financial impact is going to be 
high. There are some other fees that are non-mandatory, i.e., not 
charged to all students. Our international student fees ($40/quarter) 
and college-specific fees may be interpreted as "non-mandatory" if that 
interpretation is allowed.

Our international students pay for health insurance separately. It is 
not part of the fees. Sadly, we do not cover it, so it is an 
out-of-pocket expense for them.

Our GA/TA/RAs all get the out-of-state tuition waived. The in-state 
tuition scholarships (not waivers) cover the actual in-state tuition and 
are worth $1,600/quarter for 6 hours or $4,800 per academic year. These 
are offered only to TA's (instructors of record -- lecture or lab) and 
some RA's (graduate students included in start-up packages). RA's 
supported on grants usually get tuition AND fees paid from the grant 
budget. Some grants do not allow tuition to be budgeted, and they get 
tuition scholarships.

Our GA's are a separate category -- they may assist with grading, 
monitoring labs (without being instructors of record). These are 
typically MA/MBA/MS students and we typically don't cover their in-state 
tuition at present.

Best,
Ramu
-------------------
On 3/3/2022 1:25 PM, Mary J Farmer-Kaiser wrote:
> I'm still thinking through my take on the bill, Ramu.
>
> My initial thinking is that it'd be good, particularly when we're 
> talking about technology, building, maintenance fees.
>
> From what I've learned in my research, our tuition and fee waiver is 
> pretty generous. Per semester fees are around $200 for domestic 
> students and around $600 for international students appointed as a 
> GTA, GRA, GA, or fellows here. *What is the total amount in per 
> semester fees that grad students appointed as GRAs and GTAs pay on 
> your campuses?*
>
> Unfortunately, we have some "minor" fees that would be included in the 
> proposed broad sweep of "all mandatory fees except tuition." That 
> revenue helps us undertake some significant initiatives, and the cost 
> per student, per semester is minimal (e.g., $25).
>
> Examples? One fee provides funding to our Grad Student Organization to 
> support research and travel awards and another fee funds professional 
> development for grad students. I also worry about the potential 
> repercussion to our University commitment of funds that help us offset 
> the cost of the mandatory international health insurance plan for 
> international grad students appointed in GTA and GRA appointments.
>
> While I know we can and will find other revenue streams to cover these 
> important investments, I fully admit that it's been nice to know that 
> the dedicated fees are protected.
>
> Mary
>
> *Mary Farmer-Kaiser, PhD*
> Professor of History
> Dean of the Graduate School
> University of Louisiana at Lafayette
> 337-482-6965
> mary.farmer-kaiser at louisiana.edu
> <mailto:mary.farmer-kaiser at louisiana.edu>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> *From:* La-cgs <la-cgs-bounces at lists.latech.edu> on behalf of Ramu 
> Ramachandran <ramu at coes.latech.edu>
> *Sent:* Thursday, March 3, 2022 12:48 PM
> *To:* la-cgs at lists.latech.edu <la-cgs at lists.latech.edu>
> *Subject:* Re: [La-cgs] Senate Bill 76
> CAUTION: This email originated from outside of UL Lafayette. Do not 
> click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and 
> know the content is safe.
>
> Mary:
>
> Thank you. I think this will be a positive development, if it 
> survives. Is that your take too? A lot hinges on how we define 
> "Teaching Assistants" on our campuses. We currently define them as 
> those who are in charge of a class, i.e., named as instructors of 
> record. Some campuses have only two classifications: TA or RA. We have 
> three: GA, TA, and RA.
>
> Best regards,
> Ramu
> --------------
> On 3/3/2022 12:42 PM, Mary J Farmer-Kaiser wrote:
>> Hello all.
>>
>> Just a quick FYI to make sure that Senate Bill 76 is on your radar. 
>> It wasn't for me until recently. Our comptroller and I just finished 
>> up a review to provide the Legislative Fiscal Office with the 
>> potential fiscal impact of the bill to our institution.
>>
>> Mary
>>
>> *Mary Farmer-Kaiser, PhD*
>> Professor of History
>> Dean of the Graduate School
>> University of Louisiana at Lafayette
>> 337-482-6965
>> mary.farmer-kaiser at louisiana.edu
>> <mailto:mary.farmer-kaiser at louisiana.edu>
>>
>>
>>
>
> -- 
> B. Ramu Ramachandran
> Associate Vice President for Research & Dean of Graduate School
> Director, Institute for Micromanufacturing
> T. L. James Eminent Scholar Chair Professor
> P. O. Box 7923
> Louisiana Tech University
> Ruston, LA 71270, USA
>
> 318-257-4304 (Graduate School)
> 318-257-5106 (IfM)

-- 
B. Ramu Ramachandran
Associate Vice President for Research & Dean of Graduate School
Director, Institute for Micromanufacturing
T. L. James Eminent Scholar Chair Professor
P. O. Box 7923
Louisiana Tech University
Ruston, LA 71270, USA

318-257-4304 (Graduate School)
318-257-5106 (IfM)
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