CULLOWHEE – The Western Carolina University Board of Trustees agreed to proceed with the second phase of a five-year effort approved last December that would help the university maintain a high level of academic quality while it begins to slowly catch up to tuition rates at public peer institutions.

The plan, approved by the board during its regular quarterly meeting Friday, Dec. 7, would mean an increase of $340 (or 5.54 percent) for the 2013-14 academic year in tuition and mandatory fees for undergraduate students who are residents of North Carolina.

The proposed schedule of tuition and fees must be approved by the University of North Carolina Board of Governors and the North Carolina General Assembly.

The increases are necessary to protect the quality of education at a time of ...