It is not that Youngstown State U. is raising tuition that bothers us.

Over two years of a tuition freeze, any institution would accrue costs and debts and be thirsting for new revenue.

The problem is that the best indicator of future behavior is past behavior.

YSU just completed a $572,000 aesthetic renovation to Tod Hall, adding a glass staircase and atrium.

Over two years, the university has paid the ACE union more than $2.2. million in bonuses to avoid what would have been a one-time, .25 percent wage increase.

The 2011 operating budget proposes $52.1 million in “capital projects” spending. Here’s the breakdown:

$38,542,284 (74 percent) for Major and Basic Renovations – definition please?

$12,991,185 (25 percent) for Campus Development and Infrastructure Upgrades.

$583,114 (1 percent) for Technology and Instructional Equipment.

What can we expect from these renovations? YSU really did not need the first glass staircase. Beautification is nice, but practicality seems undervalued lately.

The spending pattern is disturbing. Buildings are crumbling in their widely untended corners. Technology is malfunctioning in classrooms. Facilities like Meshel Hall are being underused or neglected. Parking is a crisis at best.

A new face on Kilcawley Center would be nice, but the current one is just fine for now. Adjunct faculty have not seen a wage increase in years, yet YSU spends hundreds of thousands on private consulting to find new administrative employees.

Before approaching the student body, hat-in-hand, perhaps YSU might consider the value of a dollar. A beautiful exterior is nice, but much like dating, it is what’s on the inside that counts.

Please, YSU, remember that academics are the priority. We are a university, not a high-class resort. Spend on the things that will best help students achieve their goals before you ask us to pay more money for flowers.