University students interested in tracking their tuition and fees may want to learn one of the most important fee buzzwords: the incidental fee.
Each year, the Oregon University System approves a dollar figure that each student pays in incidental fees each term. The total — this year it’s $4,036,698 — is used to pay for programs where students can gain membership or take advantage of services.
During the long budgeting procedure, which lasts from October to April, the branches of the ASUO work together to decide which programs will get funded and how much of the incident fee they will get. These branches include the Student Senate, the Programs Finance Committee, the ASUO Executive, the Athletic Department Finance Committee and the EMU Board.
At the end of the process, an ASUO budget book is published and the fiscal year is covered for more than 100 programs.
The ADFC distributes the biggest portion of incidental fees, and they go to the Athletic Department. The money — $1,169,159 this year — pays for free student tickets at football and men’s basketball games.
This year, 6,100 football tickets and 2,039 men’s basketball tickets will be available for each home game.
The Student Recreation Center is another major incidental fee spender, using $537,428 this year to run many services open to students. Much of this budget is used staff the facility, which employs an average of 130 students.
“We are one of the most significant student labor locations on campus,” Physical Activity and Recreation Services Director Dennis Munroe said. “We train (our employees) well, and they do a wonderful job, but in return we’re providing jobs on campus.”
Fees for the rec center are also used to maintain the facilities in the weight and fitness room, which is free to all University students, as well as aquatics and other amenities.
Some services, such as the rock wall, non-credit courses or a personal trainer may include an extra fee, however.
“There is no fee to come in and work out alone or shoot hoops with friends,” Munroe said.
Students who live off campus or need an easy way to explore the city may be glad to know that incidental fees also pay for free bus passage.
Thanks to the $457,158 given to the Lane Transit District this year, students who show their University ID cards to bus drivers can ride free of charge.
The fee also improves the overall bus system around the University area.
LTD Service Planning and Marketing Director Larry Smith said the incidental fee also allows more direct and frequent routes to campus.
The Breeze, which stops at two locations on campus, can be a quick way for students to get around the downtown area. The bus stops at University Station (Kincaid Street at 13th Avenue), Eugene Station, Fifth Street Public Market, Eugene Country Club, 15th Avenue at Agate Street and Valley River Center.
On weekdays, routes begin at 7:08 a.m. from University Station and run every 15 minutes until 8:58 p.m.
On Saturdays, the Breeze starts at 8:59 a.m. and makes its last full run from University Station at 8:59 p.m.
Some students need child care while they are in school, and two fee-based programs supply such care.
The Co-op Family Center, which received $253,303 in incidental fees this year, offers low-cost daytime child care to student parents. Children from six months to 11 years old are accepted.
Student parents can also put their children into school programs that the Center offers to specific age groups.
Center Co-Director Tami Brownsaid the incidental fee allows low rates for students and pays teachers a living wage.
“Our mission is to provide child-care for college-level students, and the incidental fee helps us do that,” she said.
Another child-care option for lower income students is the fee-based ASUO Child Care Subsidy. The subsidy, which received $220,801 in incidental fees this year, distributes reimbursements to needy students paying for child-care.
“It gives students a little freedom and makes their lives a little bit easier,” said ASUO Nontraditional Student Advocate Gabriel Sitowski.
Students must qualify as “needy” based on various guidelines, and subsidies may be used either at on-campus or off-campus child-care centers.
University life can be stressful, and that’s why the University Counseling and Testing Center serves as a refuge for students.
The center receives $263,729 in incidental fees to provide mental health and testing services for students. Some test may have an additional charge, while counseling services are completely paid for with incidental fees.
Also provided are assessment services of “student placement and academic progress.”
Likewise, life after the University can also be a challenge, so incidental fees — $184,788 this year — also pay for the Career Center, which offers several employment and career services.
These services include job development, career assessment, career counseling and Web services. The mentor and campus interview programs are also popular
among students.
The Career Center will add a new feature to its Web site this year which will allow students to select a resume book and store their resume electronically. The service will also create an automated “agent” that can notify students of jobs that fit their interests.
Contact the senior news reporter at [email protected].