Do you think all the other top 30 or top 50 schools were keeping tuition level and not doing anything to try and rise in the rankings?
Wake is in an arms race with every other elite or wannabe elite private university in the country, as well as the top public schools. That tuition pays for the experience necessary to attract the very wealthy, elite students who can keep that ranking high with their high SAT scores, selectivity, etc.
I pulled data for WFU, Duke and Vandy on tuition and ranking in 2005 when Hatch was hired, and 2020. Tuition is inflation adjusted, and I used only tuition because they didn't report room and board in 2005.
WFU 2005 tuition $39,667 2020 54430 73% increase. Rank 27 then, 27 now.
Duke 2005 tuition $42,55 2020 58031 73% increase. Rank 5 then, 10 now.
Vandy 2005 tuition $41,663 2020 52070 80% increase. Rank 18 then, 17 now (although they have been as high as 14 recently).
I didn't cherry pick these, I picked the two most obvious (to me) comparisons. If someone has time you can look up the same data for Emory or any other school you fancy. Tuition data comes from the Chronicle of Higher Ed, you must sign up for a free account to get the historical data.
If the gripe is high tuition and stagnant ratings, that's a gripe about the entire US higher education system. Don't hate the player, hate the game.