By Abe Pfeffer

I am a student attending UNLV thanks to the GI Bill. I selected UNLV because it is veteran-friendly, has a diverse student population and has numerous excellent programs available. The end of the summer semester will complete my second year, both at UNLV and also as a resident of Las Vegas. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an incredibly impactful time for everyone. Las Vegas, a city that thrives on tourism and events, has had nearly none of that for months. With just a few casinos reopened, a large swath of Las Vegas residents remain on the delicate line of “probably unemployed, and hopefully receiving some kind of benefits.” At the end of July, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the largest annual convention in the world, announced that it will be going digital in 2021 due to health concerns. CES alone brings nearly $300,000,000 to the local economy. It will not be the only cancellation. Las Vegas’ lifeblood has been (and will likely keep being) diminished, and the Strip may once again find itself a half-empty boulevard in the middle of an unforgiving desert.

In related events, on March 23rd, 2020, UNLV decided it would transition to remote, virtual instruction. 130 days later, on July 31st, it announced a new “temporary” surcharge for all students: $6 per credit hour for undergraduates, and $8 per credit hour for graduate students, billed as “part of the Nevada System of Higher Education’s response to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.” UNLV also stated that “university, faculty, staff, and students” would all need to help “offset a $50.5 million cut to UNLV’s operating budget. To this end, the university has instituted a hiring freeze, applied across-the-board salary reductions for faculty and staff, and reduced other expenses.”

In 2018, UNLV’s total operating funds were $809,801,000. (Only 27.7 percent of that money came from state appropriations, and the $50.5 million cut is only 6 percent of the total amount.) As we contemplate those numbers and the new credit hour surcharge related to COVID-19, here are the student fees that already existed:

• Rebel Recycling Fee — $1 per semester

• Student Health Fee — $93.00 per semester

• Technology Fee — $8 per credit

• iNtegrate Fee — $3 per credit (In effect as of Fall 2009. This fee is to support the implementation of the iNtegrate student information system and its related applications.)

• Distance Education Course Fee — $34 per credit for distance education courses

• Student Life Facilities Fee — $223 per semester 4 or more credits

These are fees that every single student pays, every single semester, on top of base tuition costs. In addition, I pay $150 for an annual parking permit, and I also rent a gym locker. I am also being charged hundreds of dollars for textbooks that are mandatory for most classes, yet often are hardly used. Now, I am being charged an additional $6 per credit hour because “times are hard for the school.” 

Thankfully, the VA will be paying the surcharge as part of the GI Bill — but that leads us to an even greater issue. The GI Bill has allowed me to pass (mostly) unscathed through the pandemic; my college experience is essentially funded by the sacrifices I made in the military. However, only about 6 percent of the UNLV student population are veterans. The financial burdens of the past few months have crippled families across Nevada, and expecting students to accept yet another fee in the midst of it is absurd. The cost of education has grown exponentially over the last few decades, and while UNLV faced budget cuts, requiring one of the most financially vulnerable groups in the U.S. (young college students) to shoulder any of the current burden is abhorrent.

It is particularly galling, for example, that UNLV rents out the Thomas and Mack Center every year for millions of dollars to the National Finals Rodeo, while students are required to pay $150 for a parking pass that guarantees them close to nothing. (I have missed or been late to classes on multiple occasions after driving around for 45+ minutes trying to find parking during the rodeo.) It’s no better for instructors. Cutting their pay while they have to recreate their courses from scratch on an entirely new digital platform is bad enough, but they, too, have to pay for parking passes. (Imagine having to pay to go to work every day.)

You want your $6 per credit hour surcharge?

I want my 130-days’ worth of prorated refund for not being able to use the Lied Library or the Student Recreation and Wellness Center while they were closed. I want a refund for textbooks I was forced to purchase but didn’t need because of the transition to remote instruction. I want a refund for the required student health fee, because I can’t see a medical professional while the campus is closed. And I want every single one of the 30,000+ students at UNLV to be entitled to these same refunds — and more. (I did recently receive an email offering me a partial refund on my gym locker, but what an incredible shame that this “institution of higher learning” is funded and run as it is.)

I am aware that the times are hard. Everyone is struggling. But those who have chosen to attend UNLV have made a choice to better themselves by furthering their education and their growth as human beings, and they should not be burdened with yet another set of fees. Shame on UNLV, shame on the Nevada System of Higher Education, and shame on all those who have contributed to the exacerbation of these issues.

On August 10th, the Interim Provost sent an email to all students, nearly two weeks after I sent a letter on the topic, stating that “In recognition of the economic challenges that many of our students are facing, UNLV will reduce the Student Life Facility Fee by $50 for the fall 2020 semester. While this is called a “facility fee,” this fee covers both the maintenance of our student facilities and programming for students. We are planning for the Student Union and the Student Recreation and Wellness Center to be open during the semester and many student programs, services, and resources will be offered remotely. " 

While $50 is an excellent start, it only applies to the upcoming semester, and has no effect on the previous one. Putting a bandaid on a booboo is a nice gesture, but this issue of fees is bigger than a skinned knee. 

Abe Pfeffer is a UNLV student enrolled in the Gaming Management program. He is a U.S. Navy veteran, a competitive Magic the Gathering player, an amateur poker player, and occasionally writes about things. Find him on Twitter @cheesecows666