<HTML><BODY style="word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; ">Hi all,<DIV> Please find below an email from Erik Kolb with a detailed explanation of the recent fee increase. Thanks to Erik for this information.</DIV><DIV> Ian<BR><DIV><BR><DIV>Begin forwarded message:</DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"><DIV style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><FONT class="Apple-style-span" color="#000000"><B><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></B></FONT></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> As you may know, our quarterly fees were just increased from $105.00 to $199.18 starting Fall 2007. This is the "out-of-pocket" expenditure that every biology student must make regardless of whether they are a GSR, TA, etc. </DIV> <DIV> This fee increase is attributable to two sources: a GSA fee increase, and a Student Center fee increase.</DIV> <DIV> The GSA fee increase was voted on and approved by the graduate student body last spring and represents an increase of $4.18/quarter (from $20.00/quarter to $24.18/quarter). This is something that all graduate students who voted for this increase were made aware of during the last election cycle.</DIV> <DIV> The Student Center fees were increased by $90.00/quarter (from $20.00/quarter to $110.00/quarter). This comprises the majority of the overall fee increase (96%). Michelle Bierman has said that the fee increase represents a cost passed on to students from the construction of the new Student Commons Center. In other words, all graduate students will be paying an additional $270.00 a year "out-of-pocket" to fund the new Commons. </DIV> <DIV> Given that many people in the biology department may not have checked their recent financial statements on GROWL, this may come as unexpected and unwelcome news. You may want to forward this e-mail on the BGSA listserve. Best wishes,</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Erik </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><BR><BR>Erik Kolb <BR>Ph.D. Candidate<BR>Physiology Track<BR>Department of Biology<BR>University of California, Riverside<BR>Riverside, California 92521<BR>(cell) 626-226-7817</BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>