Eastern’s Board of Trustees voted Monday to approve Student Senate’s recommended increases in student fees.

At its October meeting, the BOT approved an overall increase of $38.20, a hike of 5.8 percent.

And since then, the Student Senate worked to divide the fees among nine fee-funded boards, except for a $9 increase in the campus improvement fee approved earlier.

Interim President Lou Hencken approved all the increases without revision, as did Shirley Stewart, acting vice president for student affairs, and the BOT, in that order.

The nine fee-funded boards will receive increases as follows: $1.35 for the Activity Fee, $5 for Intercollegiate Athletics, $2 for Health Service and Pharmacy fee, $3 for the Student Recreation Center fee, $4.80 for the Union/Bond Revenue fee, $4.50 for the Computer Technology fee, $2.15 for Textbook Rental, $1.50 for Health and Accident Insurance and $4.90 for the Grant-in-Aid fee.

In the past, no ceiling had been set on fee increases and the Student Senate approved fee hikes individually.

“Only a handful of schools … allow or seek this amount of student input,” Student Body President Hugh O’Hara and committee chair Seth Quin said in an accompanying report.

“(The new system) gives those paying the bills a voice,” O’Hara told the BOT in his Student Senate report.

Those increases will take effect during fiscal year 2003, which begins officially on July 1, 2002.

The BOT also heard updates on the state’s cutbacks to Eastern’s current budget and the Illinois Board of Higher Education’s recommendation for the university’s funding in fiscal year 2003.

The IBHE recommended a 2.8 percent increase in Eastern’s general funds, a figure tied with Northern Illinois University and Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville for the second-highest recommendation among all of Illinois’ public universities. The IBHE highest recommendation, 3 percent, went to Governors State University.

The BOT requested a 6 percent increase in funds for faculty compensation purposes, but received only a 3 percent increase. For capital projects, the IBHE recommended Eastern receive the full $7.5 million needed for movable equipment for the new Doudna Fine Arts Center, the IBHE’s No. 5 priority in capital projects.

As part of IBHE’s recommendation, Eastern did not receive any increase in funding for library acquisitions, utilities and non-personal operating budgets.

The IBHE recommended $5.6 million for the connection of the North and South Quad chilled water loops and an electrical upgrade, a project that is the state’s No. 29 priority, a position that may not be high enough to be funded by the General Assembly.

Because of the national recession, all of the IBHE’s numbers for what Eastern will receive next year are optimistic at best, Jeff Cooley, vice president for business affairs, said.

“If we receive this money next year, the university is going to be extremely pleased,” Hencken said.

Already, the state’s financial woes are causing headaches for Eastern this fiscal year. Cooley presented a report on how the administration plans to distribute $2.3 million in cuts.

In November, the state recalled $624,000, about 1.1 percent of the university’s general funds, and several weeks later state universities were asked to pay $45 million for group insurance, which equaled to $1.7 million for Eastern.

About $750,000 in equipment expenditure reserves will go toward the cutback, as will the remaining $50,000 of the university’s microcomputer fund.

Deferred maintenance spending will be reduced by $400,000 and vice presidents will also save money by not filling vacant positions in their areas. Utilities savings from lowering thermostats, a warmer winter and water savings will kick in $260,000, and a drop in university retirements will save about the same amount in accrued leave payouts, Cooley said.

In other business, the BOT approved a revision to the Board Regulations allowing coaches to accumulate up to 24 days of vacation leave without expiration, whereas in the past, coaches had to use their vacation time prior to June 30.

The BOT received the first reading of a revision that would transfer the authority of determining a per-hour cost for online courses from the BOT to the president. The cost would not reflect residency status or include student fees.

The BOT approved all of Cooley’s university purchases exceeding $250,000. Eastern accepted a $327,805 elevator maintenance bid from Cavinder Elevators, the company that currently handles the university’s elevator maintenance. The new contract runs from Feb. 1, 2002 to June 30, 2006 with an option to renew for another five years.

Eastern selected Allen Foods, Inc., to provide food for residence hall dining centers and the new food court and University Catering. The bill for the service is not to exceed $6 million, but Cooley said no certain dollar amount was bid because the university can’t predict the sales from the renovated food court.

In previous years, the university bid out several food items to different companies, but this year Eastern has chosen to go with one carrier, a move that Cooley said will save money and improve efficiency.