UNL makes $10.8 million in budget cuts, plans to raise tuition

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Chancellor Ronnie Green approved $10.8 million in budget cuts last week for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

And those cuts could be just the beginning as enrollment rates suffer.

“If we were to try to balance this budget right on tuition, we’d be talking double-digit tuition increase,” NU President Ted Carter told the Board of Regents on Monday.

Students at UNL are likely going to see higher tuition rates next year, as the University of Nebraska has been losing money.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, tuition rates have been frozen at UNL.

But inflation has increased and enrollment rates have dropped.

Carter said universities around the country are seeing similar problems.

“From a short-term perspective, the budget challenges appear manageable,” he said. “But from a long-term sustainability perspective, it is not. Unless we budget strategically for the future.”

Chancellor Ronnie Green announced the budget cuts for UNL.

The Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources will lose the most, with almost $2.9 million being cut.

The College of Arts and Sciences is losing $1.78 million, while $1.26 million is being cut from the College of Engineering.

And almost $1 million is coming from the budget for the College of Business.

The majority of those cuts are coming from money the university has set aside for empty faculty positions and wouldn’t necessarily affect students directly.

But Carter warned that the cuts could get worse in the next few years if the university doesn’t take action.

That’s why regents are considering a 3.5% tuition increase to help mitigate the budget cuts.

But Carter said the university doesn’t want to put the financial strain totally on students.

More discussion about the budget will take place at the Board of Regents meeting on June 22.