The University of Kentucky continues its spending spree on the backs of its students | Opinion

Last week, the UK announced it would build new dorms on campus, followed by the news that dining and housing costs at the university would increase around 3% each.

This, plus the ever-increasing tuition price, proves one thing about the university — it has no problem squeezing every last dollar it can out of its students with no remorse.

For background, and to be fair to the university, they are not the only practitioners of this practice. As college enrollment has begun to drop, and universities battle to become more “prestigious” than their peers, it is common practice to increase amenities on campuses to attract more students.

An interesting point about this increase of amenities as a form of attraction is that it raises prices, and primarily attracts higher-income students, while leaving the rest to hope for enough aid to foot that bill. This, all while encouraging the students from higher-income families to come in and hopefully, in the future, increase the endowments of the university. But I digress.

On the issue of finances directly at the University of Kentucky, one could make the case that the university does all it can to grant as much aid as it can to those of lower-income situations, so that they may also attend. However, data from the Council for Post-Secondary Education shows that debt, on average, has increased by nearly $15,000 from 2013 to 2020 per graduate.

I’m not sure what explanation the university might offer up as to how that shows a valiant attempt to help with rising costs, but I would interject that it is obvious the university is overspending, and in turn, passing that charge onto students. As shown by the stark increase in loan debt, students cannot independently afford that cost.

However, perhaps the data isn’t convincing enough, so I will be transparent about my financial situation. I am a student who pays in-state tuition, has kept a perfect GPA, and worked for the university two out of my three years here. Still, with all of this, I will most likely graduate with around $25,000 in student debt. I would like to know how the university would explain how its top students still accruing debt, while doing all they can to avoid this problem.

This is all to say what I believe is the sentiment being felt around the country: Colleges are beginning to siphon every dollar they can from their students, all in an attempt to increase what they have to offer to prospective students. It is essentially a snake eating its own tail. If the goal is to entice more students to attend the university, then it is a goal that can never be fully met.

All of this to say, the University of Kentucky may not be the only conspirator in the drastic rise in the cost of education, but they are our conspirator. With that, it must be stated confidently and without hesitation, that the university’s spending is out of control, and students should not be expected to foot the bill of the university’s pet projects of endless expansion and perceived “improvement.”

It is time the university listened to the views of students about the rising cost of attendance, or they may find themselves staring down the state legislature this session. Perhaps it is time for more students to sit on the boards where these decisions are made. The university’s unchecked spending spree cannot continue forever without repercussion. In similar words to “Hamilton” the musical, “If the university is in debt, why should the students bear it.”

Gavin Cooper is a junior at the University of Kentucky studying community development and political science.

This story was originally published December 15, 2023 at 9:05 AM.