Students play important role in student fee changes

When it comes to changing student fees at UNC, students’ voices play an early and important role.

The process for changing fees begins in early summer, and passes through multiple committees and branches at the University before being approved. The student body is the first step in approving these fees.

Brian Smith, the assistant vice chancellor for finance and accounting, said student input is important in the student fees review process.

“It is a very holistic approach and holistic perspective in the approval process, and we rely on a lot of input from students,” Smith said.

In order, fee proposals are reviewed by the Student Fee Audit Committee, which is chaired by Student Body Treasurer Harry Edwards; the Student Fee Advisory Subcommittee, which is chaired by Smith and Student Body President Bradley Opere; and the Tuition and Fee Advisory Task Force, which is chaired by Provost Jim Dean and Opere.

The three committees can only make recommendations on fees. From there, proposals move to Chancellor Carol Folt and then to the Board of Trustees. Folt and the trustees are each empowered to turn down a proposed fee and end the process.

The UNC-system Board of Governors has the final decision and is the only body that can officially approve a fee.

All members of SFAC, the first phase of the review process, are students. Departments looking to change their fees make requests in early summer and present their requests to this committee in September or October.

Edwards said his committee puts these fee requests under as much scrutiny as they can.

“Not only do all of these departments have to come present to a student-run committee, but they also have to collect student feedback before they present to us,” Edwards said. “So it forces them to reach out to students in their programs and services, and forces them to actually figure out if what they’re proposing is something students will find valuable.”

SFAC has no decision-making power in the process, and the committees’ vote only serves as a recommendation to the following committees for review.

But Edwards said that it is very rare for the other committees to go in a different direction from how this first committee votes.

Cole Simons, SFAC member and speaker of Student Congress, said there’s a historic precedent.

“At UNC, the administration has never approved a fee that was unanimously disproved of by the students in SFAC,” he said.

Edwards said his committee has been able to approve the majority of the fees that have been presented to them this year, with the exception of a proposed increase to the undergraduate application fee and the Kenan-Flager Business School fee. One member of Edwards’ committee found substantial negative student feedback for the latter fee.

“I think it’s really fantastic that we have such established methods of getting student input on these decisions,” Edwards said.

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