Michigan State University is looking to make some big changes in the coming year.
The Michigan State University Board of Trustees voted to approve the unification of two existing colleges during Friday morning's meeting.
The Board also voted to increase the dining and housing rates by 5% for the 2026/2027 academic year.
Through the One Team One Health Initiative, the College of Human Medicine and the College of Osteopathic Medicine would become one new medical college named Michigan State University Medicine.
Combining two colleges with unique identities will optimize resources and opportunities available to students, said Laura Lee McIntyre, MSU provost and executive vice president for academic affairs.
"It will facilitate greater opportunities for curricular overlap," she said. "It will facilitate opportunities for faculty research and clinical and instructional collaboration in a way that isn't present at current configuration."
However, the merger is controversial among faculty in the existing colleges.
Faculty cite concerns of job loss, if a successful merger is possible, and accreditation risks related to relegating colleges to programs.
A majority of the Human Medicine and Nursing faculty and about half of the Osteopathic Medicine faculty oppose the restructuring, according to a survey conducted by the MSU Faculty Senate.
The merger will take at least two years to complete, and the Board's vote is the first step in getting the project started, McIntyre said.
The increased rate for dining and housing supports ongoing maintenance and the cost of updating residential and dining halls, said Sandy Pierce, a Michigan State University Board Trustee and chair of the committee on budget and finance.
"We're really trying to build the reserve," Pierce said. "The university is putting together a plan for all of the residential halls to determine and prioritize what can be done over the next several years."
The basic residence hall, double housing and Silver Unlimited Meal Plan dining rate will be $13,574 for the 2026-2027 academic year, she said.
The 5% rate increase also applies to 1855 Place and University Village Apartments.