Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1914-05-28
LOCAL MAN On
UNIVERSITY
EXPENSE
Geo. R. Hambrecht Points Way
to Lower Tax Rate by Rails
ing NONRESIDENT Stu
dent Fee

u6Hl foG
At the annual meeting of the new
board of visitors of the University of
Wisconsin, which is to be held Thurs
day, May q, at Madison, some
strong recommendation will be made
for the report of the board which it
is believed will result, if carried
into effect, in some needed reforms
at the university.
One of the questions which will
come up will not he contained in the
reports of the special committees of
The board of visitors which are to
be considered at the annual NEE ing.
but will be brought up by George P.
Hambrecht, of Grand Rapids, one of
the leading members of the board.
Higher Fees for Ncn-Residents
1t is the question of increasing the
fees charged students from other
states. Mr. Hambrecht has ma6le a
careful study OF this question and it
is his belief that in justice to the
taxpayers of Wisconsin these fees
must be materially increased. Ham
brecht was in this city Wednesday
night en- route home from Madison
TO Grand Rapids. interviewed in re-
gard to his inquiry into the foreign
IStud,nnf nuaCtiOm ha On id.
In looking over the statistics in
regard to attendance at the Univer-
sity of Wisconsin l find that during
| the last few years the attendance
from outside of the State has in
creased about three times aus fast
as the attendance from the state.
| Now up to the time of the passage
of the law by the legislature these
students paid merely nominal fees
while now their fees Of about SIS a
year pay only about one-third OF
| the cost of the education which they
obtain from the state
Thinks Problem Would be Resolved.
IF the fees of outside students
were raised to the actual amount
it costs the state to educate them
it would in my mind, solve the uni
Uersity question The change would
work in either one of two ways. II
the attendance from outside kept VI
to the present standard it would
Increase the revenues of the uni
versity SO there would be ample mo-
'ney with moderate state appropria-
tions, with which to care for the
university expenditures. On the 9th
er hand, if the outside students did
not care to pay the additional fees
the attendance of the university
would be so materially lessened tina,
moderate state appropriations would
be ample to care for the expendi--
ture."
The university officials will not
particularly like this bringing up OF
the outside fee question at this time,
as they desire the outside attend
ance and claim they are a benefit to
the university in making it cosmopoI-
itam. Mr.. Hambrecht, however, thinks
it is an injustice that the people
of Wisconsin should be taxed to
furnish educational facilities to the
sons and daughters of residents of
other states, and is very much in
earnest i'm his intention to place
this fee for outside students ques-
ton before the state.
just what the reports of the
committees of the board of visitors
which have been making a study of
various phases of the university
question will show cannot yet be
stated, but it is declared that some
of the reports will be of great inter
est and will criticize university
methods in some points. These com
mittee reports will be presented at
the annual meeting Of the Board.
Was Given Broad Powers
The board of visitors as now con
| stituted is a result of a law pass
ed by the last 1egisle ture. The sta
tute was passed with the idea of
making the board a working body
with more powers, and by the law
a new board was created which is
given wilde 1eeWay~ in it's rights to
look into university questions.
The new board has been proving
a decidedly active organization, and
| it has given a great deal of time to
examining into university conditions
It's report will, therefore, be of great
| interest. Nearly all the members of
the new board of visitors are uni
versity alumni Milwaukee Daily
News.