The Student Senate will vote on whether or not to support an increase in Eastern’s student fees for the 2015 to 2016 school year Wednesday.

The total increase in student fees would amount to $6.30 more per credit hour if approved by the Board of Trustees.

The possible fees that would increase include the student publications fee, general student activity fee, athletic fee, student legal assistance fee, academic technology fee and concert fee, while the campus improvement fee would decrease by $2.

The majority of the student fee increase will come from a $5.36 raise in the athletic fee.

Reggie Thedford, the student body president, said the athletics department is currently $1 million in debt and requested the extra money to pay for transportation to out-of-city games.

Thedford said he feels the entire student body will not be in favor of the increase in the athletic fee.

However, he said he believes a lot of students support the athletic teams.

“Some will be against it; some will be for it,” he said.

Thedford said he believes the students who support increase understand that the athletic department is a big part of the image and the portrayal of the university.

Thedford also said while there is no direct benefits for non-student athletes, they do not have to pay for admission into games that are on campus.

“A lot of the stuff that goes to the athletic department doesn’t really benefit directly to students,” Thedford said. “But we do go and watch them play and don’t have to pay for any games.”

Thedford said he believes the support of the athletic teams plays a role in the enrollment rate at Eastern, and supporting the athletic teams’ necessities is important.

Wednesday’s meeting will also vote on supporting the 48-cent increase in the student activity fee. Thedford said the increase in student activity fees is something all students can benefit from.

The student activity fees goes toward organizations on campus such as University Board, which Thedford said the campus will need to entertain more students in case enrollment increases.

“Things we do and the University Board does is for all the students,” Thedford said, “And if we’re going to have an increase, we’re going to need a little bit more to benefit the whole student body directly.”

The new Student Government committee will also be elected at Wednesday’s meeting. Thedford will be passing down his position as the student body president and graduating this May to attend law school.

Marcus Curtis can be reached at 581-2812 or mlcurtis@eiu.edu.