June 16, 2023
Dear Colleagues:
This morning, the Board of Trustees held a meeting to adopt an operating budget and a salary plan for next fiscal year. The Board also approved rates for tuition and mandatory fees, parking, housing, and dining.
I am pleased to report that the Board adopted a salary plan that provides a three-percent increase to the salary pools, effective July 1, 2023, for all eligible faculty, staff, and professional employees. For service employees, salary increases will be distributed in accordance with the method agreed upon through the Equal Representation Committee.
In an effort to keep parking affordable on our campus, the Board approved my recommendation that there be no rate increases for general and commuter parking permits, which account for approximately 80 percent of all permits purchased by our employees and our students. We have not increased these rates for four years.
Again this year, the Board also approved my recommendation to provide Days of Beneficence to employees in December 2023. Consistent with our University’s enduring value of gratitude, these extra days—in addition to the 10 usual holidays that the Board already approved—are a demonstration of our appreciation for the sustained efforts of our dedicated faculty and staff. These extra days will occur during the coming holiday season on Tuesday, December 26, 2023; Wednesday, December 27, 2023; Thursday, December 28, 2023; and Friday, December 29, 2023.
The $372.6 million operating budget that was approved by the Board includes a three percent increase in tuition and mandatory fees for each of the next two years. This modest increase is less than the rate increase recommended by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and significantly less than the rate of inflation over the past few years.
For the first time in two years, the Board approved modest increases to housing rates and meal plan rates for students. Beginning next academic year, we will adopt a new tiered structure for on-campus housing rates based on room amenities. The base rate for each of the three tiers will increase by differing amounts, with the lowest rate increasing by only 1.4 percent. All meal plan rates will increase by three percent next academic year.
The Board also authorized me to execute a development agreement between our University and an affiliate of Fairmount Properties to implement a plan to revitalize the Village. This plan will create a best-in-class, multigenerational district driven by arts and culture, entertainment, and innovation, with a select service hotel and new options in dining, retail, living, and gathering.
The development agreement outlines the material terms of the partnership between our University and Fairmount. These terms include an approximate $80 million investment by Fairmount and its partners, which include a hotel operator and a for-sale housing developer for the Village project, leveraging our University’s commitment to finance the design and construction of a new Performing Arts Center, which will be the catalytic anchor for the project.
Thank you for your service. I hope that you have a restful, productive, and safe Summer.
