1) A Quinnipiac University student questions whether the school truly values economic diversity as stated in its mission statement, noting that many students come from wealthy families and some cannot afford the costs without scholarships. 2) The vice president of admissions acknowledges that Quinnipiac is tuition dependent with 95% of its revenue coming from student tuition and fees. It has a higher acceptance rate of 65.9% to meet enrollment targets but claims it considers applicants based on academics, not financial need. 3) Some students feel the high costs and lack of meeting full financial need limits diversity, while others and the admissions office argue the school offers merit scholarships and has a range of family incomes represented.

1. The Economic Class Diversity of Quinnipiac- Is It
Lacking?
By Matt Grahn
Dorah Labatte, a sophomore from Queens, New York, loves her classes at
Quinnipiac University, where she’s majoring in journalism. But this
semester she considered transferring to either a school in North Carolina
or a school in Illinois. The reason? Even though the university’s mission
statement says the school “maintains a strong commitment to a diverse
and inclusive student body, faculty and staff,”, Labatte believes otherwise
in terms of economic class diversity.
Dorah Labatte “When Quinnipiac accepts students, they think more of...students as
dollar signs....”
“Quinnipiac puts in their mission statement, a bold statement to the
world… that [diversity] is something that they aim for...To say … that
they could [ignore it] is ridiculous...You are advertising your school does
this, so do it”

2. According to the Quinnipiac View Book, which is produced by the Office
of Admissions, 37 percent of families in the 2014-2015 year have an
income of $150,001 or greater. This is also the largest percentage portion
of income levels represented.
Labatte, 19, said she first became interested in this topic based on what
she noticed from being around campus. Although Labatte is not an
expert on university finances, she has a strong interest on the subject and
has done some research about it. She said her friends often complain
about the cost of the school.
“ I hear [about] it every day. Every day,” Labatte said. “I know students
that only rely on their merit scholarships to go here and if they were
taken away, there’s no way they could afford it. ... I know students who
are considering transferring because they can’t afford to go here, and
[their] student debt is too much already.”
Labatte has looked into what she calls the “hierarchal status” of QU. She
feels like there is a problem with the school’s philosophy toward
admissions, as she claims that the expenses of the university lead it to
appeal to more affluent students.
“When Quinnipiac accepts students, they think more of...students as
dollar signs....” Labatte said.
According to the Quinnipiac viewbook, the price of attending is $57,090
for the 2015-2016 year, taking into account tuition, fees, and room
and board.
Quinnipiac has a 65.9 percent acceptance rate, according to US News
and World Report’s College Rankings, Another nearby private school,
Wesleyan University, has a 23.9 percent acceptance rate.
Joan Isaac Mohr, vice president of Financial Aid and Admissions, says
that funding of Quinnipiac is tuition dependent. Part of the reason is that
Quinnipiac’s $350 million endowment is not large enough to offset
expenses.

3. “Endowment is the lifeblood of any university, relieving the budget from
tuition dependency, serving as an income stream and savings account at
the same time,” according to the Give Back section of the Quinnipiac
Alumni website.
Joan Isaac Mohr
Mohr says that the school is currently not using any of the money in the
endowment. Mohr says university is hoping to grow the endowment to a
goal of $1 billion dollars in 15 years. After it reaches the target, 5% will be
taken yearly from the endowment to help cover expenses.
Despite being dependent on tuition for revenue, Mohr says that
acceptance rate is based on desired size and the budget. When asked
about it, Mohr thought it was hard to say which factor is of greater
importance, saying that, “It’s not a simple answer,”.
QU’s just published annual report for the year 2014-2015 indicates that
the school brings in $224,317,398 from student-paid tuition and fees.
Mohr said that 95 percent of the school’s revenue comes from
that source.

4. In other words, the school must meet a deposit target in order to cover
operating expenses. To meet that target, Mohr casts a wide net. Still,
Mohr likes having a higher acceptance rate. The reason why is because
the school is not “need aware”.
“You are making a decision based on [a
potential student’s] academics, not on what
it would cost you….Students would rather
be judged on who they are, not on what
their family might have the ability to pay.”
According to the Union College website, a need aware school would
consider a potential student’s financial situation before accepting them,
but It could also give them the ability to meet full need for applicants. A
need blind school is one that doesn’t consider their applicant’s financial
situation before admitting them.
Mohr feels that not being need aware is a better way of doing things.
“You are making a decision based on [a potential student’s] academics,
not on what it would cost you….,” she said. “Students would rather be
judged on who they are, not on what their family might have the ability
to pay.”
Labatte thinks that in theory, having a higher acceptance rate should
translate into greater diversity in general. However, she thinks that there
is the potential for there only being “one kind of student” attending
Quinnipiac due to finances.
Labatte argues that donors would be more likely to support the school if
it had a lower acceptance rate. Yale, for example, has a 6.3 percent
acceptance rate, and is able to meet full need of their students, according
to US News and World Reports. However, it is worth noting that Yale’s
own endowment is much larger, with it being worth $ 23,894,800,000
in according to the 2014 Yale Endowment Report

5. On the Annual Report of Giving to Yale website, they received in
donations more than $35.2 million in the 2013-2014 fiscal year.
Conversely, Quinnipiac, in their 2014-2015 fiscal year, received a total of
$1,603,133 in donations, according to their 2014-2015 annual report.
Mohr feels that this traces back to the kind of student that Quinnipiac is
aiming for. When students attend a school like Yale, she says that they
are interested in being like a CEO, whereas Quinnipiac students are more
career focused.
“Maybe in 30 years, [an alum] will be able to give a major donation, but
initially, that’s not what they’re able to do,” she said.
Mohr also feels that it’s because of this that Quinnipiac would need to
work harder than a school akin to Yale, which has both legacy and
recognition.
However, Labatte thinks Quinnipiac having such a high acceptance rate
makes it risky for donors, because they might not get their money’s
worth with the quality of the student.
“[Donors are] more willing to pay for Yale… because it has a low
acceptance rate, which means its students have to work twice as hard to
get in, and twice as hard to get out,” she said.
Senior Robel Teffera said he feels that the lack of meeting full
need makes for a barrier of entry.
“$60,000 dollars is a lot, regardless of what financial situation you
have,” he said, in reference to an approximation of the current cost to
attend, which includes tuition, fees and room and board.
Teffera isn’t personally paying for college, because he has a full-ride
academic scholarship that was specifically for Quinnipiac, from an
individual who is also a donor for the school. However, if it weren’t for
that, he says that he wouldn’t be attending college.

6. Another student, senior Vanessa Costa, says she doesn’t “come from
money,” but she says her family is able to afford Quinnipiac. However,
the story is different for some of her friends.
“... [Some of my friends] wouldn’t go grocery shopping ‘cause they didn’t
have enough money on hand to buy a textbook,” she said.
Costa, who is a public relations major, feels like the school is only putting
on an image of diversity.
“It’s one thing to say on the brochure or website that we’re diverse, but if
you walked around our campus, we don’t look like we’re a diverse
campus,” she said.
Kristy Latella,19, also feels that Quinnipiac isn’t diverse in terms of
economic class, feeling the student body is mostly of middle and
upper classes
“When you walk around, you see people in really nice clothes, you see
nice cars all around and ...when I talk to people… they like, seem very
wealthy and they can’t understand people who aren’t as wealthy.”
she said.
However, Kanicka Ingram-Mann, senior associate director of
admissions, says that in terms diversity, it isn’t always about what
you see.
“I always put it in this context: When you see people who have nice
cars… it’s a lot easier to make a monthly payment on a car… than it is to
really go into your checking or savings account and say ,‘I can write a
$60,000 check,” Ingram-Mann said.
Another student, Freshman Kristen Caron, 19, feels that Quinnipiac does
have economic class diversity.

7. “I think [the economic class diversity is] pretty broad. I know Quinnipiac
gives a lot of scholarship money. I know I have a merit scholarship, so,
even though [Quinnipiac] is expensive, it could be affordable.” she said.
Mohr also feels that Quinnipiac is economically diverse
“I don’t know what our average family income is, but it’s probably a little
bit lower, on average, than families at ...Yale…, so I think we have a
broader range of families who send their students here.” Mohr said.
Still, Labatte thinks that more can be done by the school to help improve
the way things are at Quinnipiac.
“Focus more on what you can do for the student, and that way, you can
get a ... stronger sense of community.” she said.