By Amelia Orwick | @KyKernel

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The Board of Trustees approved the 2013-14 tuition and fees, along with room and board rates, at its meeting Tuesday.

Tuition per semester for first-year in-state students will increase from $4,838 to $4,983, and from $9,932 to $10,226 for out-of-state students, representing a 3 and 6 percent increase, respectively.

Non-resident rate increases for UK’s pharmacy, dentistry and medicine programs will be 3 percent.

Mandatory student fees will increase by 3 percent, or $16, per semester. The board also approved plans to increase premium dorm rates by 4 percent.

With the change, Central Hall, opening in August, will charge $3,325 for double suites and $4,988 for singles.

To accompany the change, the board approved plans to increase the mandatory meal plan for on-campus students from five meals per week to seven.

While the change reflects an increase in cost from $1,166 to $1,300 at 12 percent, the number of meals will be increased by 40 percent.

“Today, even in a time of continued economic constraint, we are living up to the Kentucky Promise that guides us to do what is right for our state and for our future. These students who we prepare for lives of leadership, meaning and purpose,” said UK President Eli Capilouto in a UK news release.

The Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education is expected to approve proposed tuition rates in June, according to the release.

The addition of premium dorms like Central Hall is a part of the effort being made to revitalize campus, along with a $65 million renovation and expansion to the Gatton College of Business and Economics, $110 million renovation to Commonwealth Stadium and the Nutter Training Center, and $100 million construction of an academic science building.

The three projects, which already have been approved by the Kentucky General Assembly, were also consented by the board in its meeting.

“When we see our legislators and our governor, we need to go out of our way and shake their hands … we had support early on,” trustee Frank Shoop said.

In addition to approving the project, the board accepted $16.4 million in gifts and pledges from alumni and friends of the university to be put toward the renovation and expansion of Gatton.

The board also took the time to recognize the achievements of a number of students, faculty and staff on campus, including the UK cheerleading and dance squads, who were present at the meeting.

Capilouto praised UK Honors students and National Merit Scholars, reporting that UK obtained record numbers in each category.

“President Capilouto has expressed a vision of Honors as a magnet, an intellectually attractive program that draws students from Kentucky and other states to Lexington,” said Benjamin Withers, the Honors Program’s director, in the news release.