The price of gas has been escalating throughout the year and students, as well as the University, have had to make some financial adjustments.Crude gas prices have especially hit those students who commute to Nicholls. Thomas Holt, computer science junior from Morgan City, said he has sacrificed many activities in order to get to school five days a week.

“I’ve given up money in my wallet for gas,” Holt said. “Put it this way, I’ve also given up doing a lot of other activities besides going to school. I have to drive to Thibodaux five days a week for class, so I spend about $35 or more a week to fill up my 15-gallon tank.”

According to CBSNews.com, the price of gas will not diminish anytime soon. The federal Energy Information Agency stated that gas prices are predicted to average more than $2.10 a gallon nationally through the conclusion of next year, assuming oil stays above $55 a barrel. A year ago, oil cost $44 a barrel, and gasoline was $1.89 per gallon. On Friday, according to CNN.com, oil jumped to about $65 a barrel.

E.J. Beauty, mass communication sophomore from Houma, also commutes to Nicholls everyday.

“I’m comfortable commuting, but gas prices are hurting me because I have to go to all of these different places,” Beauty said. “After school I go back to Houma for work.”

Beauty also spends about $35 a week on gas. “Gas prices are a pain,” Beauty said. “I don’t know about everybody else, but they’re killing me.”

In an interview with CNN.com, Trilby Lundberg, who publishes the semimonthly Lundberg survey of 7,000 gas stations around the United States, said that Hurricane Katrina cut 11 percent of the U.S. gasoline production ability, destroying refineries and damaging pipelines. At least four refineries in the U.S. Gulf Coast are shut down due to Hurricane Katrina and will most likely remain offline for months, according to CNN.com.

A nationwide survey released Sunday said that damage to Gulf Coast oil production from the storm pushed gas prices to all-time highs.

Gas prices are not only affecting commuters. Students who live off-campus in Thibodaux are also finding dents in their wallets because of the rising prices.

“I haven’t had enough money to fill up my car with gas for the past month,” Jennifer Horton, marketing sophomore from Shreveport, said.

On the other hand, some students, like Horton, have practically given up their vehicles in order to preserve the gas that is in their tanks.

“I ride my bike to school because gas prices are so high,” Brett Guidry, art sophomore from Houma, said.

“I haven’t given up anything for gas money; I just don’t drive,” Horton said. “I bum rides from my friends. My car is definitely always on ‘E.’ I probably wouldn’t even make it to the gas station right now if I tried to. I’ll have to push my car to Colonel Truck Stop.”

The University has had to make some modifications concerning the consumption of gas as well.

“One of the things we did to cut back on (gas) costs was instead of using premium gasoline, we use regular unleaded gasoline (for University vehicles),” Terry Dupree, interim director, said. “We replaced all the older vehicles, and the newer vehicles are manufactured to run on the regular unleaded gasoline. That helped us save some money as well.”

The most recent records of gasoline expenditures the University has state the highest cost of gas from July 2004 to May 2005 to be $4,974.56, which was in March 2005. The University bought a total of 2,760 gallons of gas that month. The minimum cost the University has paid for gas during that period was $2,381.53 for 1,749 gallons in December 2004.

University vehicles are used only for University purposes. Faculty and staff are allowed to use these vehicles, but trips taken must be authorized, Dupree said.

According to Dupree, gas costs for the University will fluctuate with the use of the campus vehicles and the cost of gas at the time of purchase.

The University has paid anywhere from $1.26 to $1.96 for gas, according to the gasoline expenditure records.

“We probably get a better mark-up because we’re purchasing mass quantities,” Dupree said.

According to Dupree, the cost of gas is not just affecting the consumer on the highway.

“When we’re buying stuff, we may get these fuel surcharges now on things we’ve never gotten fuel surcharges for before,” Dupree said. “The distributor has to recoup their cost in order for them to stay in business, so our product cost is going up. It’s unfortunately hitting everyone’s pocketbook.”

Most large airlines charge fuel surcharges ranging from $20 to $87 for international travel, and many domestic fares have reached more than $100. Major pizza delivery businesses, such as Dominos and Papa John’s, have also added a fuel surcharge of $1 in most major markets, according to CBSnews.com.

Web sites have been developed to assist the consumer in saving cash at the pump. Cheapgas.com is a Web site that offers ways to find cheap gas or even the chance to get free gas by filling out surveys. Fueleconomy.gov allows browsers to find the cheapest gas in their areas.