Students Protest Cuts to Higher Education with ‘Day of Action’
Ioana Patringenaru | March 8, 2010
A diverse mix of students, faculty and staff members turned out Thursday on the UCSD campus for a statewide Day of Action.
Hundreds of students turned out on Library Walk Thursday to protest budget cuts and fee increases in higher education. Students also spoke up about campus climate.
The rally was part of a statewide protest billed as a “Day of Action.” From Sacramento to Los Angeles, demonstrators from public schools, community colleges and universities gathered to protest cuts and demand access to an affordable public education for all. Similar protests also took place throughout the nation.
At UC San Diego, a diverse crowd of students, staff and faculty marched through campus before assembling in front of the Geisel Library for three hours of speeches—and a student performance.
The protesters held up signs and banners, including “Power to the Public,” “Defend Public Education” and “Quality Education is a Public Good. Fund Education Now!” They also chanted while walking through campus and during the rally.
The crowd cheered loudly when Daniel Widener, a professor in the UCSD history department, announced that the Black Student Union (BSU) and Chancellor Marye Anne Fox had signed an agreement to address diversity issues and improve the campus climate by enhancing diversity on the campus, in the curriculum and throughout the UC San Diego community.
“This is historic,” Fnann Keflezighi, co-chair of the BSU, said at the rally.
Thursday's demonstration included speakers and a student performance on Library Walk at the foot of the Geisel Library.
The agreement includes funding for three years of BSU-initiated yield programs to increase the diversity of the undergraduate student body and funding for the program coordinator position for the African American Studies minor and Chicano/a Latino/a Arts and Humanities minor. It also includes additional faculty positions as funding becomes available and the creation of a task force to promote the recruitment, support and retention of underrepresented faculty. Administrators also will meet with students to determine details for African American, Native American and Chicano Resource Centers. The university also will implement many other action items as part of the effort.
“We’re pleased to see such a great exchange of ideas today. We now have a signed agreement to move forward,” UC San Diego Chancellor Marye Anne Fox said in a statement. “We applaud our student leaders, the campus and the San Diego community for their engagement, passion and leadership on finding solutions to these issues. Although there is much work ahead of us, our ongoing partnership will build a healthier campus climate that supports everyone in a meaningful way.”
Demonstrators asked for increased funding from California's legislature and protested higher fees.
During Thursday’s rally, many said they already saw improvement in the campus climate. “You’ve changed this campus completely,” Krishna Sriram, an engineering student and a representative of the Graduate Student Association, told demonstrators. “I can’t believe we’re at UCSD. This is awesome.”
State funding for UCSD’s 2009-10 budget was cut by more than $84 million and another $80 million may be cut from next year’s budget if legislators don't approve the university’s latest budget proposal. These budget cuts directly impact the heart of programs that allow the campus to target first-generation and low-income students, attract and retain qualified and diverse faculty and ensure that the university provides a curriculum that reflects the cultural richness of the state and region, officials said.
“California’s budget cuts to UC campuses have resulted in a 51 percent decline in per-student funding over the last two decades,” Chancellor Fox said in a statement. “The state needs to fully fund public higher education, and we welcome the involvement of students, faculty, staff and friends in advocating on behalf of UC San Diego. These cuts hurt our ability to offer a world-class education to a diverse student body.”
Krishna Sriram, an engineering student and a representative of the Graduate Student Association, spoke during Thursday's rally.
Access to affordable public universities is essential to democracy, Lisa Lowe, a professor in the literature department, said during a press conference that took place before the rally. “The crisis is not only about the budget, it’s about priorities in our society,” Lowe said.
Several speakers, including Edwina Welch, director of the Cross Cultural Center at UCSD, warned demonstrators not to get complacent. Students, staff and faculty must continue taking action beyond Thursday’s protests, Welch said.
“This is a movement,” she said. “This is the beginning.”
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