A national day of protests against education funding cuts began Thursday with generally peaceful rallies, walkouts and teach-ins at community colleges, universities and high schools. At Cal State Dominguez Hills in the Carson area, about 50 students gathered in front of the student union with some shouting "Give My Education Back!" and carrying signs that proclaimed: "From Pre-K to Ph.D., Let Me Go to School."
Here’s an update on the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act ("SAFRA"), or H.R. 3221. This is the bill that passed the House of Representatives in September and would reinvest $87 billion in savings from student loan programs in increased Pell Grants and the American Graduation Initiative.
Conan Nolan interviews Jack Scott, the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges about the challenges facing the nation's largest community college system in this tough financial climate.
Activists Relating Their Compelling, Personal Stories to Elected Officials
Dec. 2009 - Since the beginning of the fall semester, student mobilization interns across LACCD haven’t had a chance to catch their breath. To date, they have planned and held six townhalls meetings, 15 legislative visits, collected tens of thousands of ‘Stop the Cuts’ postcards, conducted 10 surveys and held five campus rallies.
Insist that Lawmakers Not Cut Classes, Not Raise Fees
The LA Community College Faculty Union and its Student Intern Program are working together to make sure the voices of community college students are heard during the ongoing debates on higher education and budget in Sacramento. Our goal is to deliver 50,000 postcards to their lawmakers to demand:
AFT interns get real world lesson in grassroots democracy
Community college student Joana Batz, 21, has mobilized classmates to fight education cuts, marched in rallies and phone banked voters to educate them about elections.
ADD the following text + attached pix (091119-batz) to the home page : Her hands-on experience in grassroots democracy, through an internship program organized by American Federation of Teachers, Local 1521, is grooming her to be part of the next generation of progressive activists. But she has also performed a valuable community service by connecting with voters who are often left out of the political process.
Elected Officials Address reduced classes, other cuts in services at community colleges
Two Town Hall meetings at Mission and Pierce Colleges on Oct. 29 featured hundreds of students asking legislators tough questions about the budget cuts and their impact on their education. At Pierce College, before a standing room only crowd, Assemblywoman Julia Brownley fielded questions from students about the budget process and heard their displeasure over more cuts. At Mission College, Los Angeles City Councilmember Richard Alarcon took questions from students asking about the future of their education, and focusing on the California state budget crisis.
Budget Cuts Affecting All Colleges: “I think one of the biggest issues right now is the budget. I like to talk to students and educate them about what is going on; it’s amazing how many students are uniformed. This program has taught me that the only way to get noticed is by organizing and approaching issues based on your audience’s concerns. I came home from UC San Diego for financial reasons and hope to transfer to UCLA. Many students are concerned about the cuts and their effect on community colleges, but what they may not realize is that the schools they want to transfer to are also being hit hard by cuts so it is important to fight for affordable education everywhere.”
We are LACCD students standing up to keep the door of opportunity open for all. Our goal is to mobilize students to fight for affordable education and legislative changes in order to give everyone the chance for higher education. By coming together and actively participating in the governmental executive process, we give voice to community colleges as stepping stones to success.
March 4 Day of Action Rallies held at: CSUN, UCLA, Pershing Square, and Long Beach Guild representatives and student interns are teaming up with other educators and activists to rally to defend public education
March 5 Rally to kick off the 48-day "March for California's Future" Send off in Los Angeles for the 400 mile walk from Bakersfield to Sacramento
March 22 March in March Community College Students and CSU students come together in Sacramento to let legislators and the public know they will not stand idly by as our educational system and our students suffer
Dec. 2009 - Since the beginning of the fall semester, student mobilization interns across LACCD haven’t had a chance to catch their breath. To date, they have planned and held six townhalls meetings, 15 legislative visits, collected tens of thousands of ‘Stop the Cuts’ postcards, conducted 10 surveys and held five campus rallies.
The LA Community College Faculty Union and its Student Intern Program are working together to make sure the voices of community college students are heard during the ongoing debates on higher education and budget in Sacramento. Our goal is to deliver 50,000 postcards to their lawmakers to demand:
download it here
Community college student Joana Batz, 21, has mobilized classmates to fight education cuts, marched in rallies and phone banked voters to educate them about elections.
Two Town Hall meetings at Mission and Pierce Colleges on Oct. 29 featured hundreds of students asking legislators tough questions about the budget cuts and their impact on their education. At Pierce College, before a standing room only crowd, Assemblywoman Julia Brownley fielded questions from students about the budget process and heard their displeasure over more cuts. At Mission College, Los Angeles City Councilmember Richard Alarcon took questions from students asking about the future of their education, and focusing on the California state budget crisis.
Community Colleges’ New Clout
