On April 11, 2022, at 1:11 pm, President Kate Morris sent out her campus update. The e-mail consisted of a list of the recently tenured professors as well as an update on the new General Counsel Committee. The last thing President Morris mentioned was the 3.0 percent increase in the comprehensive fee. This is an increase of about $2,265 from last year.
Since the beginning of the semester, President Morris has been facing many criticisms. Students were upset about the lack of recognition for SLU traditions with the senior streak incidence. She has been under the watchful eyes of students who have monitored her trips to visit the Kenya program and her trip to Florida. Students were not happy with the language of the email the President sent out that evening.
The language in the email was criticized by students. Particularly, the line “worth the investment.” Many students, including graduating senior Serena Wells, believe that St. Lawrence does the opposite of investing, such as when it comes to students. “When the majority of the professors I’ve had and know that my friends have had are visiting…it doesn’t seem like the school is attempting to hire professors for the long term,” said wells.
“I’m not sure you can say something is worth the investment when courses that are required for one’s major or courses that focus on certain areas of the world aren’t able to be taught because we don’t have the professors to do it, or it all gets put on the plate of a handful of professors,” Wells continued. The school does not seem to be concerned with investing in itself, hence students questioning their own investments in the university.
Wells continued on the subject. “If tuition and costs for the students keep rising, why are our dorm buildings in the states that they are without any discussion of them being repaired or fixed long term?” It seems students do not mind paying the expenses of this institution, but they want to see that money used well.
Compared to similar schools, St. Lawrence’s price is quite similar. Starting with our closest neighbors, Clarkson, whose cost for the upcoming year is around $75, 411 as listed on their website. Colgate University is very similar to St. Lawrence boasting about a private, not-for-profit liberal arts education. Colgate’s cost of attendance for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year is $77,490. Forbes ranked Williams College as one of the best liberal arts schools in the country. Williams is also a private and not-for-profit school like SLU and their tuition for the upcoming year is very similar to SLU’s, with a total of $78,000.
While the costs of attending the institution are high, the school offers plenty of aid for incoming students. “In the 2020-21 academic year, we awarded $76,741,578 total in financial aid to St. Lawrence students,” says SLU’s website. The university also states on the website that 58 percent of St. Lawrence students received need based financial aid in the 2020-2021 school year.
When picking the right college, the cost is a large part of the decision process. So students should pick the school that offers them the best, especially when the cost is around the same for most colleges and universities.