Oregon Public Broadcasting

Students at the state's public universities got a bit of good news, bad news Friday.

At a meeting in La Grande, the State Board of Higher Education raised the price of a college degree by an average of 3.4 percent this year.

But, the university system also agreed to clarify the full amount a student will pay to attend college. Over the past decade, many universities have balanced the budget by imposing extra fees for registration, housing, and any number of things.

Students and parents said those new fees hid the full price tag of a college eduation.

George Pernsteiner is the chancellor of the state's university system.

On his cell phone, Pernsteiner said the combined tuition and fee price may make it harder for some schools to raise extra money.

George Pernsteiner: “It may, but there is an opportunity for the campus Administration to propose to the board differential tuition for different programs.”

At the same meeting, the school approved the University of Oregon's plan to sell $200 million in taxpayer bonds to build a new basketball arena.

But a recent land use decision in Eugene means the arena project may get delayed.