ROCK SPRINGS — Students will see some higher costs at Western Wyoming Community College starting with the upcoming fall semester. 

The college’s board of trustees approved 15% increases to both the residence hall rental rates and the cost of a meal plan for the college’s cafeteria. According to Dustin Conover, the college’s dean of students, the increases are motivated by a need to make both programs pay for themselves, as well as build up reserves that would allow the college to address maintenance and other needs. Conover said the residence halls are showing their age, the oldest of which was built in 1976, and the newest building being constructed in 2006. Issues related to building age are becoming an issue. Last year, the college was forced to address plumbing problems in its Snowy Range Hall after pipes degraded to a point where sewage was leaking into the building’s walls and ceiling. After repairs were completed, a similar project was approved for White Mountain Hall. 

Conover said the increases would amount to $50,000-$60,000 a year in reserves, adding to the $500,000 already held for emergencies. Conover said a boiler or roof problem would quickly use up those reserves.

“These buildings are seeing their age,” he told the board. 

The college has seen a steady 6% increase in residence hall rent for the past four years. 

With meal plans, Conover said reserves will be needed to update equipment in the cafeteria, though the increase is aimed to address the increased cost of food. The college has subsidized the food costs through reserves during the past few years, with the college using approximately $114,000 from reserves to subsidize meal costs during the 2024-2025 academic year.

Trustee Ken Lorimer said the college can’t survive without approving the fee increases, though he admits voting in favor of them is tough to do because of their impact on students.

“I don’t like approving these fees,” he said. 

The increases were a part of a larger block of fee increases approved by the trustees, which includes increasing required student fees in an effort to keep up with rising costs, as well as anticipated funding shortfalls resulting from Senate File 69, which allows for a 25% homeowner property tax exemption. Kirk Young, the college’s president, said Western expects a revenue decrease of about $750,000 due to the bill.