University of North Texas President Gretchen Bataille addressed the Board of Regents for the first time Thursday, after she abruptly resigned Wednesday.

Gretchen Bataille

But the reason for her resignation, which takes effect Feb. 28, remained a mystery. When she was asked why she resigned, Bataille, 65, shook her head, saying she was unable to comment.

The board is scheduled to discuss and formally accept her resignation today, but not without a fight from students.

“We implore the Board of Regents to hear the students and not accept the resignation of Dr. Bataille for the betterment of all of the students at UNT and the future of UNT,” student body president Dakota Carter wrote in an e-mail sent around campus and posted online. He also wrote, “She has ensured that our degree is worth more and more, our education is affordable and that we remain a student-centered institution.”

A student Facebook group called “Fight to keep President Bataille!” had more than 350 members Thursday.

Bataille has received favorable job reviews and sizable bonuses since coming to UNT. She now makes $498,000 a year and is credited with hiring more professors, seeking more research and scholarship funding, and promoting environmentally friendly practices on campus.

During her finance presentation Thursday, Bataille outlined the spending plan for the next fiscal year. She also proposed a tuition increase, which has become increasingly controversial in recent years.

She told regents she had support from the student body and campus for a proposed tuition and fee increase of 5 percent for the next two fiscal years; however, board members were pushing for a 3.95 percent increase.

Various state universities are considering increasing their tuition and fees ranging from 3.95 percent to 5 percent, Bataille said, and she wanted to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

“We are certainly aware of the board’s interest in keeping tuition low,” Bataille said. “While the board wanted 3.95 percent, we had to have something to go to the students with and we wanted to go on the outside.”

In a split decision, the board approved a 3.95 percent increase in tuition and fees.

Chancellor Lee Jackson would not say why Bataille resigned, but said it had nothing to do with the recent move of the UNT system offices to downtown Dallas or with any arguments over the proposed tuition and fee increase for the Denton campus, despite public speculation.

“I initially supported a 3.5 percent increase … but I supported a 3.95 percent increase this week to the board and staff,” Jackson said.

The regents’ approval of the 3.95 percent increase in tuition and fees came after a much-argued discussion by the board’s finance committee, during which members debated the costs associated with a “tier one” school, the future of the university and keeping costs down for students.

Carter, the student government president, told regents Thursday that the students want to attend a quality institution, such as a “tier one” school, and wouldn’t mind paying a 5 percent increase in tuition and fees to get that education.

“I speak with students daily … and they’re completely in support of it to stay competitive,” Carter said. “We want to graduate with a degree that actually means something someday.”

Jackson said he was uncomfortable seeing student costs rise and said he wanted to try to respect anxiety over rising tuition and fee costs, and limit the university’s plans.

Board of Regents chairman C. Dan Smith told regents it was impossible for UNT to grow without raising tuition, since the state will likely cut funding to universities in the near future.

If UNT makes budgetary cuts, it’s important to make the right ones, he said.

“If we’re not careful, we’ll really hamper the advances we make in the future,” Smith said.

In Bataille’s presentation to regents, she said it’s time to “fish or cut bait,” and it was time the university improved in science and math and worked to become a research institution.

“We need to think about how we invest and how we reallocate those investments … and what will help us down the line,” she said.

Throughout Thursday’s meeting, Bataille’s colleagues patted her on the shoulder and offered their support. The news of Bataille’s resignation was a “sad surprise,” said Wendy Wilkins, UNT’s provost and vice president of academic affairs. Wilkins said she was unable to comment any further on the situation. Rick Villareal, UNT’s athletic director, called Bataille’s resignation “a big loss.”

“She’s been such a great partner — from academics to athletics. She’s not just involved in locally, but nationally, with the NCAA. There will be a little bit of a hole left once she’s gone,” Villareal said.

Villareal said he met with Bataille on Wednesday to discuss her resignation. Although Bataille would not give him a reason for leaving, he said, she wanted to make sure her vision for the Denton campus moved forward without her.

“She came to help the university and there’s no way we’ll stop [those projects she’s been working on],” Villareal said.

UNT alumnus Nick Ricco called Bataille’s departure “a super-duper terrible shock.”

He said Bataille has changed the face of UNT, galvanized the alumni base and brought excitement to campus.

“It’s a lot better than docility, which is what we had before,” he said. “She’s built such a strong university that we can take our time to find another Gretchen Bataille — unless we can talk her into un-resigning.”

Rice Tilley, a former UNT regent, said he’s impressed with Bataille’s leadership and accomplishments, especially efforts to make UNT a “tier one” university.

“I am extremely sad to learn of her resignation, which caught me totally by surprise,” he said.

CANDACE CARLISLE can be reached at 940-566-6889. Her email address is ccarlisle@dentonrc.com .

Position: president of University of North Texas since 2006

Age: 65

Prior career: senior vice president of academic affairs at the University of North Carolina System for six years and interim chancellor at North Carolina School of Arts for a year. Prior to that, held administrative positions at Washington State University, University of California at Santa Barbara, Arizona State University and California State Polytechnic University at Pomona.

Education: scholar of American Indian literature, with doctorate in English from Drake University; bachelor’s and master’s degrees from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo.

Among accomplishments at UNT:

* Emerald Eagle Scholars program, which helps many students who are the first in their family to go to college, by assigning them mentors and hiring them to work on campus.

* 60 percent increase in funded research expenditures and awards over the last two years

* Hired more than 350 new faculty members since 2007.

* Supported and oversaw UNT’s new football stadium, which is scheduled to open in fall 2011.

* Teamed up with the presidents of UT-Arlington and UT-Dallas to support a bill to help the campuses pursue "Tier One" status. The bill became law last year.

* Created Office of Sustainability to help review the university’s environmental practices and ensure the campus is working to become an even more sustainable institution.