Administrators discussed plans to increase need-based financial aid while remaining need-aware at Monday night’s Student Union tuition forum. Upper-level administrators presented information about tuition increases and socioeconomic diversity efforts before a question-and-answer session.

While the administration dragged its feet for many years coming up with a plan, it is encouraging to see the University making strides to improve this glaring blemish on its record. This marks the first time Wash. U. has set concrete goals, and it comes after The New York Times in consecutive summers publicly took the University to task for standing out among elite universities for its dearth of low-income students.

Washington University’s 3.6-percent tuition increase from the last academic year to this one was the lowest in 60 years, Barb Feiner, vice chancellor of finance and chief financial officer, said at Monday night’s Tuition Forum.

Recent national media has criticized Washington University for its controversial “need-aware” admissions policies and low percentage of Pell Grant recipients, but administrators say that though they hope to increase that percentage, they are not able to do so immediately.

After ranking No. 7 on the Princeton Review’s list of “Best Value Private Colleges and Universities” in 2012, Washington University dropped out of the top 10 in the 2013 edition. The Princeton Review factors in academic quality, financial aid accessibility and “Tuition GPA,” or the real cost of college.

[media-credit id=3223 align="alignleft" width="300"][/media-credit] The base price of a Washington University education has risen more than 50 percent in the last 10 years and will likely continue to rise at a similar pace, University administrators say.

Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton responded to widespread unease over the rising cost of a Washington University education by assuring students that he is committed to keeping tuition hikes reasonable while maintaining high educational quality.

Despite a national trend of universities discontinuing funding for national merit scholarships, Washington University continues to fund students named with the distinction. New York University’s recent decision to stop funding the National Merit Scholarship Program (NMSP) has incited a host of discussions amongst universities over whether it is practical to offer scholarships based on standardized test scores.

Although the U.S. Senate passed a resolution that will maintain Pell Grant funding for the 2011-2012 academic year, universities nationwide continue to be uneasy over the potential for future cuts to the program.

Starting in fall 2011, being a Residential Advisor (RA) will no longer jeopardize a student’s eligibility to receive financial aid. In an email to all RAs for the 2011-2012 school year, Associate Director of Residential Life Mary Elliott announced that the RAs will now be considered full employees of the Office of Residential Life.