NSU faculty and staff with children enrolled in the Mailman Segal Center for Human Development receive a 35 percent discount off the school’s $7,000-$14,000 tuition. However, NSU students with children enrolled at the center do not get a deduction.
Mark Andrew Jones, associate vice president in the Office of Human Resources, said the discount is an employee benefit that helps NSU be a valued choice compared to other employers.
“We are an educational insti-tution and [the waiver policy] can serve as an enticement for talent to come to us, recognizing that they can take advantage of this for their own development as well as for the development of their family members,” Jones said.
When Chad Waxman, second-year doctoral student of clinical psychology’s wife got pregnant they began looking for a school for their baby and said he was shocked that students did not get a discount at the center.
“I said, ‘This doesn’t make any sense,’” Waxman said. “I’ve never heard of anything like this. If anything, I’ve heard the opposite where students who don’t get a lot of money get a nice discount and faculty and staff would deal with more cost because they have a job.”
Jones said the discount keeps employees at NSU. He said employees who receive the discount are “persons who are employed by the university full time or who are regular part time employees working an excess of 19.2 hours per week or 1,000 hours per year” and can receive that discount six months after they start working.
But Waxman said he thought the policy was unfair.
“It’s basically saying, ‘You’re not as important as all these people,’” Waxman said. “I understand that nobody actually said that but policies dictate these things.”
Willa Boston, fourth-year doctoral student of clinical psychology, thought of enrolling her child in MSC a year ago but decided against it when she heard the price.
“It’s kind of sad that they don’t have any childcare program for students,” Boston said. “You wouldn’t have to leave. If something’s wrong, they’ll be right there. It’s way more convenient to be able to have your child [in the local area] instead of having to drive farther.
Frank DePiano, Ph.D., said that the discount for faculty and staff has existed since MSC’s founding. He said NSU employees also receive tuition discounts for enrolling in academic programs. He suggested that students who want to change a policy start by speaking to the Division of Student Affairs.
“The university is always open to requests and ideas,” he said. “It doesn’t mean everybody always gets what they ask for, but it’s always considered; it’s always thought about.”
But Jones said there are currently no plans to expand the tuition discount policy.
