For UMass students, a welcome financial relief

The university system’s board of trustees had increased fees by $1,500 in February, the highest fee hike at UMass in years, hoping to offset expected gaps in funding. The $1,100 relief, available to students not already on financial aid, should help, said UMass President Jack Wilson.

“This means a lot to families,’’ said Wilson. “We really wanted to keep our fee increases at or below inflation level, and we’re excited we’re actually able to do that.’’

The 15 percent jump in fees announced in February brought average tuition costs for an in-state undergraduate to $11,000, not including room and board. In the midst of a recession, the hike was protested by many as an undue burden.

But some still thought a UMass degree was good value for the money.

“I supported it,’’ said Matthew Hoyt, a student representative on the trustees board from UMass-Dartmouth. “Compared to the value of the education, it was worth it.’’

Others contemplated dropping out.

“I know many students that said, ‘If I have to pay another 1,500 bucks, I’m going to have to quit school,’ ’’ said biology professor Randall Phillis, president of the professors’ union at UMass-Amherst. “It’s public higher education, so the intention is students don’t pay fees beyond their means.’’

In response to the outcry, Wilson had promised to rebate most of the increase, if enough federal stimulus money rolled in.

It did, $118 million worth, and the university system will pay out more than $22 million in refunds, said Robert P. Connolly, a UMass spokesman.

Students who do not rely on financial aid, about half of the system’s undergraduates, will receive a $550 credit for the fall semester and see a $550 reduction in their spring bill. Some aid-dependent students will receive partial rebates, while others were not affected by the jump in fees.

The rebates will apply to students at the Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, and Lowell campuses.

Hoyt said the reimbursement reestablished the student population’s trust in the school’s administration.

“There was an initial point when students thought the board was trying to stick it to them and was never going to return the fees,’’ he said. “But now it shows that the board truly supports the students and is looking out for our best interests.’’

With the scaleback, mandatory fees will increase by $400 in 2010. The increase from 2008 to 2009 averaged $282.

Wilson said fee hikes have stayed at or below inflation levels for the past seven years.

The $1,500 increase would have ended the inflation-level streak, breaking a promise Wilson made when he started as president. But in the spring, Wilson said the hike was necessary in the face of falling revenue from the state.

State funding dropped $80 million from 2009 to 2010.

But with stimulus funds representing only a one-year fix, fee hikes or cuts may have to be reconsidered in 2011, officials said.

“It’s definitely buying us time,’’ Wilson said. “We have to use this stimulus money to make a soft landing next year. We can’t wait until the situation is upon us.’’

Jack Nicas can be reached at jnicas@globe.com.