NIU students could see fewer course sections because of a possible loss of revenue caused by a drop in enrollment.

NIU Provost J. Carroll Moody said NIU will “have to tighten its belt” if undergraduate enrollment for fall semester 1993 does not improve.

As of March 31, applications to NIU were down by 1,289

compared to last year. The number of accepted applicants who confirmed they were going to attend NIU also was down by 300.

Three-hundred less students would cost NIU about $500,000 in tuition. Moody said a loss of $500,000 could pose a major problem for the university. He said the loss of revenue would affect the academic area of the university.

“We might not be able to offer as many course sections or classes in the fall,” Moody said.

Moody said part of the problem is it now costs NIU more to offer the same number of course sections as were offered in previous years.

A contributing factor to the increased cost is NIU faculty and staff received a 7 percent raise last year and could receive a raise between 2.5 and 5 percent this year.

NIU would be in a financial bind despite increased revenue generated from the tuition increase and a modest 1 percent increase in funding recommended by Gov. Jim Edgar. NIU and Regents officials have projected NIU’s tuition increase could bring in as much as $2 million.

This year’s tuition increase originally was part of a three-year phase-in plan. At the March 17 Board of Regents meeting, however, the tuition increase was condensed into a two-year plan. Moody said the possibility of declining enrollment did factor into the decision to condense the tuition increase, but said there were several other factors which went into the decision.

In addition to fewer course sections offered, another area which is being affected by the enrollment decline is housing. Applications for the residence halls are off by 680 applications which could cost housing services around $2 million in room and board.

A room and board rate increase of $160 was passed by the Board of Regents Finance and Facilities committee meeting to deal with increased costs and the declining occupancy.