In a meeting this morning in Tuscaloosa, the University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved a tuition increase, as well as the naming of a commemorative plaza outside of Coleman Coliseum in honor of Sarah Patterson.

The tuition increase, which will come into effect fall 2012, came in an attempt to rely less on state funding, which has decreased by an approximate $174 million for the entire system since 2008.

“Each year, we work with each campus to come up with their recommendations, and, as you can tell, they vary by campus,” said Ray Hayes, vice chancellor for financial affairs of the UA system.

Hayes sees the changes as being significant, yet necessary.

“It’s just a fact,” he said. “The whole environment has changed in regard to having state funding.”

As a part of the new tuition approval, the UA campus will see a 7 percent in-state increase from $8,600 to $9,200 yearly — a $600 increase. Out-of-state tuition for this campus will see a 4.8 percent increase from $21,900 to $22,950 yearly — a $1,050 increase.

The University of Alabama Birmingham campus will similarly see an 8.5 percent increase in in-state tuittion from $7,740 to $8,400 yearly — a $660 increase. It will also experience an 8.5 percent increase in out-of-state tuition from $17,730 to $19,230 yearly — a $1,500 increase.

Finally, the University of Alabam Huntsville campus will have a 8.6 percent increase in yearly tuition from $8,094 to $8,794— a $700 increase. The out-of-state increase will be 8.7 percent from $19,424 a year to $21,108 — a $1,684 increase.

Hayes said the new changes will allow all three schools to continue to rank in the middle when compared to the tuition of other institutions in the Southern University Group, a cooperative of 35 universities in the South.

Scholarships involving tuition will increase proportionally to the tuition changes, said Kellee Reinhart, spokeswoman for the UA system.

Additionally, UA Student Government Association President Matt Calderone commends the board of trustees on their decision.

“Tuition had to go up this year since state funding was cut this year,” Calderone said. “The University did a great job at keeping the tuition increase at the lowest it could possibly be. The SGA will continue to offer scholarships and other initiatives to ease that burden for the students.

The finance committee hopes to put the additional funds that would be collected from these increases towards maintaining good faculty and staff.

“What we want to do on all three of our campuses is maintain the quality of instruction,” Hayes said. “Retaining our faculty and having competitive salaries is something we spend a lot of time on and want to make sure we do.”

In addition to the tax increase, trustee members approved the naming of a commemorative plaza outside of the Coleman Coliseum. The area will be called the Sarah Patterson Champions Plaza after the current gymnastics coach Sarah Patterson.

Patterson has coached gymnastics at UA for 34 years when she was hired by then-athletic director Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant in 1978. She has led the gymnastics squad to six national championships and seven Southeastern Conference championships.

The plaza will be designed as a gathering place for the UA community. It will feature engravings that showcase UA’s many athletic programs, as well as a sign labeling the area as the Sarah Patterson Champions Plaza.

Athletic director Mal Moore showed his appreciation and pride in the naming of the plaza in honor of Patterson.

“This is something we’ve worked on now for over two years, maybe close to three years,” Moore said. “We’ve looked at several renderings, and it came together at a great time — a lot of success as far as sports.

“But this plaza will be a way of recognizing the success of every sports — both SEC and national championships. It will, I think, really add to the setting in front of Coleman Coliseum. We are really proud of this.”

The plaza has no official dedication date at this time, said Reinhart. The board will introduce an architect proposal at their September meeting. The schedule of the building of the plaza will have to work around the baseball team she said.