Higher education price index rises 3.6 pct

NEW YORK—A price index tracking higher education costs rose by a modest 3.6 percent this year, an investment manager for nonprofit institutions said Thursday. But the index doesn't take into account soaring utility prices in the past several months.

The Commonfund Institute, based in Wilton, Conn., relies on last year's costs for utilities and supplies and materials since only preliminary figures are available for the year ending June 30.

But preliminary figures indicate utilities alone grew by 13.7 percent, compared to the 0.9 percent growth from 2007 used in calculating Commonfund's 2008 figure.

If using the preliminary figures, the higher education price index would have gone up by 4.6 percent.

The consumer price index for the same period was 3.7 percent.

HEPI is designed to track the cost drivers in higher education. It measures the average prices of goods and services purchased by colleges and universities each year.

The categories include salaries for faculty and other employees, utilities and contracted services such as data processing, transportation, communication and supplies.

Last year's higher education price index was 3.4 percent.