Coronavirus Update for April 7: Reduction to Spring Quarter 2020 Mandatory Student Fees

Dear Western Students,

The WWU Board of Trustees, in a unanimous vote at a special meeting held earlier today, approved a set of reductions in mandatory student fees amounting to a total decrease of $171.47, or 28.6%, per full-time student over fee rates from those previously set by the Board for spring quarter 2020. Following is a detailed breakdown of those fee reductions.

graph shows the breakdown of changes to the mandatory student fee structureI want to offer a special thank you to the Associated Students Executive Board, the AS Finance Council and Student Senate for its recommendation of an 85% reduction in the Services & Activities (S&A) fee allocated to the AS, which was accepted and included in the fee reductions detailed above. This decision will address many students’ financial hardship concerns while also allowing the AS to continue providing student-centered programs and initiatives remotely.

On that note, I encourage Western students to participate in a Virtual Town Hall event tomorrow, Wednesday, April 8, from 4-6 p.m. via Microsoft Teams with the Associated Students Executive Board. This event will feature a presentation from the AS Business Director on tuition and fees, including the AS allocation of the S&A fee. This is a good opportunity for students to engage with their elected student leadership, as well as learn about steps the AS has taken to be fiscally responsible and aware of the evolving economic impact of COVID-19.

In assessing changes to student fees, it is important to note that some of the services supported by mandatory student fees, such as academic advising, counseling, health and wellness services, library and cloud-based research resources, and career services, among others, continue to be offered remotely. In other instances, mandatory fee revenue supports truly mandatory expenditures for student-endorsed commitments, such as service on the bonds used to construct projects like the Multicultural Student Center and Wade King Student Recreation Center, both approved by votes of students.

The technology fee supports access to laptops, cloud computing and critical software that is especially important in a remote learning environment. Mandatory fees also support many student employees who are able to continue working remotely in critical service areas.

In addition to mandatory student fees, 71% of course fees have been eliminated or reduced, while many administrative fees have been waived including fees for parking permits, late add/drop fees, and late payment fees. Additionally, we have extended deadlines for housing decisions, including move-out dates and fall 2020 housing confirmations, as well as extended admissions deadlines for fall 2020. Fees refunded due to COVID-19 response include study abroad and commencement fees, among others. Refunds will be applied automatically to student accounts following our usual procedures.

Through the use of reserves and other forms of one-time cost reductions, such as the recently-announced temporary suspension of hiring, non-essential purchases and travel restrictions, the fee levels can be reduced for spring quarter 2020 without compromising the remote delivery of essential services or defaulting on bond covenants, while also maintaining remote student employment wherever possible.

Further information and supporting materials on mandatory, course and administrative fees for spring quarter 2020 presented to the Board of Trustees can be found here.

Again, I want to thank the leadership of the Associated Students of WWU, the Faculty Senate leadership and the University’s Trustees for being our partners throughout this crisis. And, I want to thank you for engaging in, and adapting to, the new remote learning format for spring 2020.

Please be safe and take care of yourself.

With gratitude,

Sabah Randhawa

President

 

The Incident Command System team at Western has established three goals for all of our preparation and response to COVID-19:  to protect life safety and minimize the spread of the coronavirus illness, to maintain – as much as possible – the continuity of Western’s operations, and to communicate with our communities as fully as possible.

Western's coronavirus information website features Frequently Asked Questions; has links to campus, regional and national resources; an archive of campus messaging and media stories about coronavirus; a new toll-free campus coronavirus information line, and more. The site is a living document, and will get frequent updates as the coronavirus situation evolves.