Allie Abel

I don't know much about golf. Sure I know about golf clubs, carts and plaid sweater vests, but I'm clueless about the rules and the lingo.

So traveling to Hershey, Pa. to cover the University's men's golf team in the NCAA Div. III National Championship was a little unnerving.

Click to see the 2010-2011 Student Services Fee Budgets.

Members of the Student Fees Advisory Committee recommend cutting funds for student organizations, departments and activities to cover a budget shortfall leaving advisers questioning how they will cope.

Dr. Howard Patterson, vice president for student affairs, asked departments to cut 5 percent from their budget to offset a projected flat year for enrollment and replenish the reserve fund.

Based in current enrollment, the student service fee could not collect enough money to maintain the budget. The committee decreased the budget by $124,461 to balance it.

Regents for the University of Texas System agreed to raise tuition for all campuses including a 4.30 percent increase for UT Tyler during a special meeting March 3.

Approved tuition increases ranged from 3.36 to 5.06 percent targeted to begin this fall. UT Dallas is the only campus not increasing tuition for current students, however, new students there face a 3.95 percent increase while non-resident undergraduate and graduates are scheduled pay 9 percent more.

Representatives from Arlington, Austin, Dallas and Tyler campuses all asked for the capped amount of 3.95 percent each year for the next two years.
UT Tyler asked for a 3.95 percent increase but the regents approved a slightly higher amount. That means full time students will pay $140 more per semester.

The meeting in Ashbel Smith Hall included nearly two hours of reports on proposed tuition increases and budget cuts from institution and student government presidents from all nine UT academic components.

Student Government Association president Amy Whitehouse supports the nearly 4 percent tuition increase, but admitted she did not seek student body opinions on this issue.

Whitehouse or another member from SGA plan to attend the Board of Regents meeting in Austin, representing the student body and their voice.

Greg Lassen, vice president of business affairs, said the board likes to see and hear from students.

The Patriot Talon asked Whitehouse if the SGA held a student meeting or conducted a poll to gather student opinions.

University officials propose increasing tuition nearly 4 percent and committees to “scrub” the University’s budget to meet state-mandated cutbacks.

President Rodney Mabry, vice president of business affairs Greg Lassen and a Student Government Association representative plan to appear before the Board of Regents in Austin on March 3 to submit the University’s planned $2.8 million cuts and to support a tuition increase.

I knew I should have kept my thoughts to myself; at least while I was inside. The house does not like it when I complain. In fact, I don’t believe the house likes me at all.

It began when I signed a six-month lease to my cute rent house. The neighborhood seemed quite, the landlord was nice and a married couple I know had lived there before. They had nothing bad to say except for a one-time water leak that resulted in a high water bill. Overall, their experience was pleasurable.

The first week I moved in was nothing short of a renter’s nightmare.