Western New Mexico University overcharges the people of Southwest New Mexico for a college education. In the Fall, Western will charge $3,209 a semester for 15 credits; its peer institutions, called comprehensive school by the state, Eastern will charge $2,584, $625 less than Western, Highlands will charge $2,400, $809 less than Western and Northern New Mexico will charge $2,183 a whopping $1,026 less than Western for a semester. These schools offer the same programs, are financed by the same funding formula and pay their faculty about the same. Why does Western charge so much more than any of the others?

It wasn't always this way, in the 2011-12 school year Western charged $45 a semester LESS than Eastern, next year Western will charge $625 MORE than Eastern for one semester.

Western is a state institution, no one would stand still for the Motor Vehicle Office in Portales to charge 25% less for auto licenses than the price being charged by the MVD Office in Western. But no one seems to care that Eastern is charging 25% less for the same college education as Western.

Alfred Milligan
Silver City, NM 88062