The funeral will be Monday at Snow Funeral Home located at 3775 N. Center Road in Saginaw.

“He was definitely a leader’s leader,” said National Guard Liaison Sgt. John Claybaugh. “Even though he was a college student he carried himself as though he had years of military experience. He had students in his charge and he always took care of them.”

Claybaugh said Kaleyta, 21, turned down a scholarship with ROTC to join the National Guard and receive more leadership experience.

“We told Dustin that the Army National Guard needs him more than he needs us,” Claybaugh said.

Kaleyta kept up morale in his squad, while also being compassionate, Claybaugh said.

Shelby Township senior Brent Kearns knew Kaleyta for three years.

“He was assigned to me as part of the mentor/mentee program,” Kearns said. “We got a new mentee every year, but he’s the only one I kept in contact with because he was the only one who actually cared about doing things with the military.”

Kaleyta was a cadet, training to be an officer.

“He was one of the best leaders I knew,” said Pfc. Dominic Monte, who was in Kaleyta’s unit. “He was easy to talk to and a genuinely good guy,”

Kaleyta was well liked by everybody, Monte said.

As a person and member of ROTC, Kearns said Kaleyta could be seen as a role model.

“I think anyone that would see him would say, ‘I wish my son would grow up to be like that someday,’” Kearns said.

EMU’s Board of Regents announced a 3.65 percent increase Monday, and the other two universities’ were determined last week at their respective board meetings. U-M raised tuition 6.7 percent while MSU raised tuition 6.9 percent.

Each undergraduate resident will pay $306 more at EMU, $797 more at U-M and $788 more each year at MSU.

CMUwill determine its own tuition increase at the July 14 board of trustees meeting.

The Wayne State University Board of Governors will meet Wednesday to determine its tuition rate, but university officials have already stated a 7.1 percent increase is necessary to balance the school’s budget.

Thus far, all of the state universities to have set rates have avoided a tuition restraint penalty which would result in a further loss in state funding. If schools exceed the 7.1 percent tuition increase, they will see additional losses in state funding beyond the 15 percent they will already lose in the state’s budget.

Saginaw Valley State, Oakland and Western Michigan universities have also set their tuition rates.

With a 15-percent cut, CMU is set to receive $68 million in state appropriations next year.

University President George Ross has said to expect to see a “modest” tuition increase. Tuition rates were already raised 2.5 percent for master’s and doctoral tuition, and a 3 percent increase to ProfEd tuition.

Barrie Wilkes, associate vice president of Financial Services and Reporting and university controller, previously said the final decision on tuition will be made at the July board meeting.

He said the board is shown a comparison of how other schools handled their tuition increases, but the board ultimately makes the decision independently.

“There’s a comparison provided, but that is not key to developing the university’s budget,” Wilkes said.

Each of the state’s 15 public universities lost 15 percent of their state funding from fiscal year 2010-11 for next year. However, if universities raised tuition more than 7.1 percent, they would see a penalty, resulting in a further loss of funds.

SVSU raised undergraduate tuition rates by 6.9 percent, OU by 7 percent and WMU by 6.66 percent.

Eric R. Gilbertson, SVSU President, said the increase represents penny-pinching and sacrifice by the university.

SVSU has the lowest tuition of the state’s public universities; according to the Saginaw News, undergraduates will pay $7,815 for 30 credit hours, or $260.50 per credit hour in 2011-12. Undergraduates paid $243.60 per credit hour last year.

OU now charges $331 per credit hour; WMU charges between $4,381 and $4,840 as a flat rate for 12 to 15 credits. Students enrolled in one to 11 courses are charged $303-334 per credit hour. Freshman and sophomore students see the lower rate.

With a 15 percent cut, CMU is set to receive $68 million in state appopriations next year.

University President George Ross has said to expect to see a “modest” tuition increase. Tuition rates were already raised 2.5 percent for master’s and doctoral tuition, and a 3 percent increase to ProfEd tuition.

Barrie Wilkes, associate vice president of Financial Services and Reporting and university controller, said the final decision on tuition will be made at the July CMU Board of Trustees meeting.

He said the board is shown a comparison of how other schools handled their tuition increases, but the board ultimately makes the decision independently.

“There’s a comparison provided, but that is not key to developing the university’s budget,” Wilkes said.

The University of Michigan will set its tuition rates Thursday at its board of regents meeting.

J.J. Boehm, director of media and public relations at Saginaw Valley State University, said a long term view needs to be taken for budgets.

SVSU’s Board of Control chose to raise tuition by 5.9 percent for 2010-11 students.

“Like many of our sister universities, we’ve undertaken cost savings measures over the year,” Boehm said.

For one credit hour in-state students will pay $243.60, and they will pay $7,307 for 30 credit hours worth of tuition, he said.

SVSU is not alone, however. Michigan State University also made the recent decision to increase tuition.

The tuition rate for an average MSU student increased 2.5 percent to $273 per hour for in-state students after a decision by the MSU Board of Trustees on Friday, said Jason Cody, university relations director for MSU.

Cody said average tuition costs per semester are $11,153.

The MSU Board of Trustees also approved a 10 percent increase of financial aid for 2011-12, Cody said.

“We are proud of the way that the MSU community is working together to build value for students and stakeholders in Michigan and around the world,” MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon said in a press release. “As a response to these difficult economic times, all employee groups have demonstrated support by forgoing salary increases for a year.”

Boehm said the increase was the best course of action for fiscal and academic cost for SVSU. He said the financial aid and scholarship programs have also increased about 8.5 percent.

State and student tuition was evenly split with 50 percent paid each way ten years ago, Boehm said.

However, now 75 percent is covered by the student alone and 25 percent by state.

The University of Michigan also raised tuition 1.5 percent for students, meaning most students with a 30 credit hours will pay $11,837.

Central Michigan University’s tuition rates will not be determined until the July 15 Board of Trustees meeting.

Information from the Detroit Free Press was used in this article.

Cortez, an adjunct professor of History at Saginaw Valley State University, is working on her doctorate at CMU. Having already taught at Mid-Michigan Community College and SVSU, Cortez is taking three classes on qualitative analysis on the weekends in the EHS Building.

“It’s very clean and efficient,” Cortez said. “I like how it’s made with green technology.”

The green technology has added many different elements, including bigger windows, to let in natural light. The four-story, $50 million building opened in 2009 to house the College of Education and Human Services and the Center for Charter Schools.

“The smart boards are great,” Cortez said. “The technology just takes some getting used to.”

The technology includes RoomWizards and CopyCams, which are meant to help the classroom learning process for students.

After taking a year off, Bay Port Graduate Student Brenda Gaeth returned to a new building with better accommodations for becoming a counselor.

“The openness of it was incredible,” Gaeth said. “I loved how everything was accessible. Loved the classes, as well.”

A professors perspective

The building’s resources also won over many professors.

Since the addition of the building, there have been training sessions to help the professors fully equip their students. Allowing for students, as well as the professors to interact with other colleges.

“Because we have such high technology, our students are able to get exposure,” said Marguerite Terrill, professor of Teacher Education and

Professional Development. “Through this, we are able to interact with other universities, which is professionally enriching.”

Terrill said the three of the major departments that deal with teacher education are Teacher Education and Professional Development, Counseling and Special Education, and Human Environmental Studies.

One thing the EHS Building did was to bring all three of these departments together. Before the move, TEPD was in Ronan Hall, CSE was in Rowe Hall and HEV in Wightman Hall.

“It’s wonderful — it’s been a great transition,” Terrill said.

But not for those at Saginaw Valley State University and Michigan State University.

SVSU decided to pay for the fees that would have benefited the students via the scholarship.

“With the timing of being halfway through the semester, we thought it would be most appropriate to pay for the students expenses,” said Donald Bachand, Academic Affairs vice president for SVSU. “We absorbed a significant cost, but it seemed like the right thing to do.”

The Michigan Promise was not included in Michigan’s $44.5 billion state budget signed into law by Gov. Jennifer Granholm on Oct. 30 because of cut funding.

The Promise was a state-sponsored scholarship signed Dec. 21, 2006, replacing the Michigan Merit Award. It provided $4,000 to students attending at least a two-year institution.

Approximately $700,000 from SVSU’s funds are being used to pay for the Promise Scholarship.

“We would have spent it on programs for the students and improvements to the campus,” Bachand said. “But either way, this benefits the students.”

Out of the school’s entire population of 10,498 students, only 1,400 are given the money to pay for their tuition, said J.J. Boehm, media relations director for SVSU.

Those 1,400 students will get the credit on their student accounts immediately, Boehm said.

SVSU president Eric Gilbertson made the final decision with the university’s governing board.

Val Meyers, associate director of financial services at MSU, said the students who received the Michigan Promise will be compensated with a university grant one semester at a time.

“Students with the fall award will be replaced with an MSU grant. Students with the spring award will also be replaced by the same grant,” she said. “It’s a two-step process.”

Can’t afford the promise

Other schools, including Central Michigan University, still say they will not pay for the scholarship.

At Grand Valley State University, the billing statements have already been sent out to those supposed to receive the money.

“It’s a promise from the state, not from the university,” said Matt McLogan, vice president of University Relations. “At GVSU, we only accept good students who usually have that Promise scholarship.”

At GVSU, the Promise scholarship elimination affected 7,300 students. At the beginning of the school year, the student were told if the scholarship were to not pass, they would have to pay themselves.

“It was something that we warned our students,” McLogan said. “It doesn’t make it any easier to swallow, but they knew ahead of time. It’s a shame, because it sends a signal that education in this state isn’t a main priority.”

GVSU’s President Thomas J. Haas informed students in September that since the state could not keep its promise of aid to students, the university would have to revise students’ bills.

“It is regrettable that the state cannot fund these scholarships to our students, but Grand Valley simply cannot absorb the cost of fulfilling the state’s promise,” said Mary Eilleen Lyon, assistant vice president for News and Information Services. “We do understand that the cancellation of aid this late may cause unusual hardship for students.”

But not Central Michigan University.

Interim President Kathy Wilbur has no plans on hosting one, said Director of Public Relations Steve Smith, in an e-mail to Central Michigan Life.

Instead of presenting an annual address to the entire university regarding issues facing the school, Wilbur favors hosting several small meeting throughout the semester, Smith said.

He said Wilbur favors smaller meetings because they create a more intimate and open setting to interact with students, faculty and staff.

“Many people are uncomfortable speaking up in large settings,” Smith said. “The smaller forums are relaxed and conversational which gives President Wilbur a better opportunity to hear the interests and concerns of students.”

While many universities around Michigan host an annual State of the University address, Wilbur, along with Gary Shapiro, interim executive vice president and provost, are currently engaging in a series of student forums across campus in resident halls.

Smith said former university president Michael Rao hosted four or five State of the University addresses in his nine years as president.

What other schools do

Saginaw Valley State University President Eric Gilbertson hosts two all-school forums a year, said Jo Stanley, administrative assistant to the office of the president at SVSU — one in January and another back-to-school address in August.

In addition to that, Stanley said Gilbertson constantly attends student forums, teaches a constitutional law course and helps students move in.

Grand Valley State University President Thomas Haas teaches upper- and lower-level chemistry courses one day each a semester, said Rachel Siglow, executive secretary to the president at GVSU.

Siglow said Haas hosts an annual all-school forum every year in August and regularly sits down to talk with students.

Western Michigan University President John Dunn, who hosts the State of the University address annually in the fall, does more than most to presidents to interact with students, WMU Executive Secretary Elaine Gaudio said.

Gaudio said Dunn gives remarks at three or four gatherings a week, most of which involve students.

She said he also keeps a blog which he updates various times a week and has a Facebook account with thousands of friends.

“I’d say his interaction with students tops the list,” Gaudio said.

Susan Martin, who has been president of Eastern Michigan University for two years, has never hosted a State of the University address, said Holly Smith, executive secretary to the president at EMU.

Holly Smith said Martin was planning on hosting one this month, but there is currently no set date for one.

Troy sophomore Josh Allard said the game everyone grew up knowing as a gym-class special can be for adults, too.

“It’s like taking an elementary school game to another level,” he said.

The Dodgeball Club is a registered student organization that started two years ago.

“It’s a good mix between a fun atmosphere and people who want to win,” said Williamston senior and Club President Bryan Lynch. “It’s a lot of fun and a great way to meet
people.”

There are about 25 to 30 students involved with the group. Vice President and Muskegon sophomore Miles Potter said it is the only RSO on campus without dues, although
members pay for their jerseys.

Dodgeball can involve some injuries, however.

”Head shots count — everything counts,” said Sterling Heights junior Mike McCarthy. “One time, I rolled my ankle during the runoff, but I was back the next day playing.

“Fingernails get ripped off all the time. That’s why we wear gloves and tape our fingers.”

Allard is fan of the game, but only as a spectator because he is already involved with several club sports.

“It’s high intensity and a lot of fun. Throwing balls at people is pretty enticing,” he said.

McCarthy said he feels comfortable in the group.

“I grew up playing dodgeball in the basement with my family, and I always screwed up playing sports, so I just wanted to go and play and be active,” McCarthy said.

He said being involved has left him with several good memories.

“My best experience so far has been going and playing Grand Valley,” McCarthy said, “and I missed the practice the day before and they had told us all to wear white, but I wore
my lime green dodgeball shirt from before.

“I was the last kid playing and I’m wearing my lime green shirt and the crowd was just going crazy, they were booing and yelling. It was crazy.”

Scrimmage time

The Dodgeball Club got some practice in before the season opens with a scrimmage Sunday against Saginaw Valley State University.

Central won the scrimmage 6-0. The first game is next Sunday at Michigan State University.

“There are two 25-minute matches, and whatever teams loses all their players first, the other team gets a point,” said Lynch. “There are 15 people on each team and 10 balls.”

There are no tryouts and students are welcome to come to practices and join. For more information, visit the Facebook Group, “Dodgeball at CMU.”