Regents vote to approve tuition, fee and compensation adjustments

The University of Colorado on April 16 announced proposed tuition and mandatory fee adjustments for the 2026-27 fiscal year, designed to maintain academic quality, invest in employees, support student services and sustain the university’s mission.

The Board of Regents voted to approve the administration’s proposed tuition, fee and compensation plans during its regular meeting April 16-17 at CU Denver. The changes support initiatives at the four campuses aimed at ensuring adequate resources to support an enhanced student experience as well as the ability to recruit and retain faculty and staff in a competitive environment.

Chad Marturano, vice president and chief financial officer, presented details of the proposals, which will be used to determine CU’s annual budget. Regents vote on the 2026-27 budget in June.

“An important takeaway from today’s decisions by the Board of Regents is that the University of Colorado continues to deliver exceptional value – producing more degrees with fewer resources than peer institutions,” Marturano said. “And we’re doing it while expanding access through investments in financial aid and maintaining quality by investing in our workforce.”

To support workforce retention and recruitment, regents approved the resources in-line with the state’s action of a step payment plan for classified employees, plus a 1.0% merit pool for non-classified employees at CU Boulder, CU Denver, CU Anschutz and system administration. In addition, these campuses also have targeted budget initiatives for compression, retention and adjustment pay.

At UCCS, due to structural budget challenges and the need for balancing measures, the campus will have a one-time, non-base-building corpus of $1.5 million to be allocated to its non-classified employees in FY 2026-27.

Final compensation increases for employees are based on a mixture of merit increases and needed market adjustments. Revenue thresholds would need to be met in order for increases to be granted at CU Denver; those thresholds will be determined based on fall enrollment figures, expected by October 2026, with the increases potentially taking effect for a new Jan.1 through Dec. 31 compensation cycle. (CU Anschutz is the exception, as its compensation cycle will continue to match the fiscal year.)

In a difficult budget year, the legislative Joint Budget Committee and state lawmakers recently approved continued investment in higher education, providing funding that continues to cover core costs for public institutions.

Regents approved an in-state undergraduate tuition rate increase of 3.5% on the Denver and Colorado Springs campuses. They approved a 3% rate increase for students on the Boulder campus with that increase only affecting incoming first-time students not already covered by a tuition guarantee that locks in rates for four consecutive years. Tuition increases on the Anschutz campus vary by school or college. In real cost, this means in-state undergraduate tuition would increase roughly $360 to $420 per year, versus out-of-state undergraduate increases ranging between $780 and $1,311 annually.

Regents set tuition as early in the calendar year as possible to help Colorado families and students better plan for long-range financial obligations and allow campuses to better plan for important future investments in areas such as financial aid, compensation, accessibility, research and faculty.

Over the last decade, CU has held tuition growth to more than 7 percentage points below inflation for resident undergraduate students. It has coupled those efforts with increased investments in institutional financial aid, more than doubling its investment over the last 10 years to $312.7 million, which exceeds the amount the state invests in all financial aid for all public institutions. In the most recent year, CU campuses covered full tuition and fees for 9,077 resident undergraduate students who qualify for federal financial assistance.

Evidence suggests that CU’s approach to ensuring funding for campuses while supporting students through financial aid options is working. For example, during the time it held tuition increases below inflation and significantly increased financial aid, degrees awarded increased by 25%, indicating students were completing degrees at a higher rate.

Regents also approved increases to student fees on two campuses, boosting those fees by $49 on the Denver campus and $70.30 on the Colorado Springs campus while holding Boulder fees flat with no change. Fees at CU Anschutz are tied to each specific area of study.

Also at the Board of Regents meeting:

Strategic Plan update: Marturano also joined Lynn Vidler, provost at UCCS, during the regents meeting on Friday to present an update on CU’s Strategic Plan 2.0. The two are Strategic Planning co-chairs for the systemwide effort.

While meetings of the Strategic Plan Working Group continue through the end of this academic year, the group is recommending a shift from the five-year structure of the previous plan to a 12-year foundational approach with three-year strategic cycles and annual review of progress toward goals. The change is designed to enable faster decision- making and alignment.

In breakout groups, regents and university leaders discussed six suggested priority areas and potential metrics to track.

Marturano and Vidler are scheduled to share feedback from regents and the Steering Committee with the Working Group at its meeting Friday. Another opportunity for feedback and consideration by regents is set for the board’s June 4-5 meeting in Greeley.

Board secretary vote: The board voted to name Kerry Tipper secretary to the Board of Regents. Tipper was elected vice president, University Counsel, by the board in December 2024.

For more on the April board meeting, see CU Boulder Today and CU Denver News.