I am a graduate of UMass Amherst and a former employee of the university. As a native of Northampton, and a former Gazette carrier, I still feel fondly about my early days in the Pioneer Valley.
However, I am deeply concerned about the building boom of my alma mater and its cost to Massachusetts taxpayers. In my opinion, tuition and fees should be increased significantly for both in-state and out-of-state students. This is especially true for out-of-state students who now comprise 24 percent of the entering class at UMass.
At a reception held on the Amherst campus last fall, Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy told the audience in the Student Union Ballroom that he was proud to say that $1.2 billion was being spent on the Amherst campus, between new construction and renovations. Of that, $400 million came from the state and $800 million was raised in bonds.
On Thursday, the UMass Board of Trustees, headed up by Chairman Victor Woolridge, will vote on the rate of tuition and fees for the 2016 -2017 academic year.
UMass Amherst has and continues to under-charge its current students, with the primary cost and financial burden going inappropriately to Massachusetts taxpayers.
While I continue to appreciate my UMass education, it is time for current students (and parents) to start picking up the appropriate cost of an UMass Amherst education.
Doug Cooney
Natick