Gov. Dannel P. Malloy is doing the dirty work of trying to rein in state spending, and the University of Connecticut should do likewise - cut its expenses before moving to boost tuition.

But it appears another tuition increase is where UConn is headed. In response to the governor's proposal to cut 10 percent, or about $35 million, in state funding for the university, UConn's board of directors is poised to meet later this month to consider increasing tuition and fees.

In February 2010 the same board voted to raise tuition by 5.7 percent for UConn's 30,000 students. The cost today for an in-state student to attend the university's main campus at Storrs, including tuition, room and board and fees, is more than $21,000. An out-of-state student pays about $38,000. At regional campuses such as Avery Point in Groton, where there is no campus housing, tuition is about $8,000. Out-of-state students at the regional campuses pay about $25,000.

UConn touts its affordability compared to other public universities in this part of the country, saying its tuition is less than Penn State, Rutgers University and the universities of Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. But just because other states are charging too much for a higher education is not a reason to follow suit.

The university should also consider that the families sending students to the school will be facing significant tax increases. They need a break from ever-higher tuition fees.

Despite the spiraling cost, more students than ever are applying to UConn - more than 28,000 applicants this year, up 23 percent over last year. That makes the university more competitive than ever. A large number of applicants who don't make the cut for the main campus are accepted to the regional campuses.

While it's great that so many find UConn desirable despite rising costs, it's also true that a certain percentage of those applicants turn there for the very reason they can't afford a more expensive private university. This is what makes the UConn board's hasty consideration of another tuition increase so troubling.

This university just explained away a $1.6 million loss on a football game. ("We said the bowl games are not going to make money, but we feel the residual effects of the bowl game are well worth it," said Mike Enright, associate athletic director for communications.) Yes, the trip to the Fiesta Bowl was good publicity for the university, but college ought to be about getting an academic education, not a sports thrill.

And what about the $3.9 million that the UConn board voted to spend in November for a consulting firm studying ways to save money? That report is still in the works, and it won't address the possible 10 percent that needs to be shaved if the governor's budget recommendation is adopted. A university filled with people holding doctorates in economics, business and finance shouldn't have to hire outside help to come up with savings.

Incidentally, the university hired that consultant after former UConn President Michael Hogan spent nearly a half-million dollars remodeling his office and snubbed the university-provided presidential mansion (recently renovated at a cost of about $1 million) for a $49,000 annual off-campus rental instead.

The UConn board should think of the students and families and look to cut management and administrative costs before it considers the quick fix of higher tuition.

And it doesn't need a consultant to do it.