Student files lawsuit against UNCW, UNC System over tuition and fees

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A UNCW student has filed a class-action lawsuit against the University North Carolina Wilmington, the UNC System and its Board of Governors over its decision to effectively close campus without providing any reimbursement for tuition and fees.

On March 12, UNCW announced it was extending spring break and would then move nearly all classes online for the remainder of the semester starting March 23.

“While closing campus and transitioning to online classes was the right thing for Defendants to do, this decision deprived Plaintiff and other members of the Class from recognizing the benefits of in-person instruction, housing, meals, access to campus facilities, student activities, and other benefits and services in exchange for which they had already paid fees and tuition,” the lawsuit states.

UNCW announced in early April that housing and dining meal plans will be refunded based on a start date of March 23, which was the day after the deadline for students to move out of their residence halls if they had not received an exemption to remain.

However, the suit claims the reimbursement does not ‘fully compensate’ for their loss, in other words, the refund amounts do not apply to the full cost of housing and dining funds that have been unused as a result of the University System’s rapid response to COVID-19.

When it comes to the cost of tuition, the plaintiff claims UNCW’s online degree program, which is a distance education program that was offered before the COVID-19 pandemic, is roughly 18% cheaper than the tuition for the same degree earned on campus.

The 2020-2021 annual coast of attendance for full-time undergrad students is $4510 for the on-campus degree program. The cost is $3710 for distance education.

The plaintiff claims her online instruction is not the same as being taught in person. For example, only one class is being taught live through online instruction. One class is pre-recorded and available to watch but not participate in and the other four classes only have assignments online without no video instruction at all.

As for fees, the plaintiff claims one mandatory fee covers several services on campus that she can no longer participate in, such as athletics, recreation, and other facilities.

When reached for comment, a UNCW spokesperson said they can not comment on pending litigation.

The lawsuit seeks a trial by jury.