Students for California's Future: News

February 8th - 14th, 2010

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Potential oil tax to benefit California higher education draws mixed reactions - California higher education officials have watched with mixed feelings as a potential oil severance tax -- which may in the end provide funding for state colleges -- has made its way through the Legislature. Contra Costa Times

Stand up for California's Children and America's Future - I am a native Californian. I was brought up by generations who had survived the Great Depression and World War II. They were people of modest means who dreamed of a better future for their children and grandchildren, and they knew that education was the key to that future. I attended public schools in California and then was privileged to attend the University of California at Davis and the University of California at Santa Barbara. I have had a wonderful life and my education was the key. San Francisco Chronicle

Guest Post: A Missed Opportunity to Stimulate Change in Higher Education - In its first days, the Obama administration made two bold moves affecting higher education. One was declaring that the nation would regain world leadership in college attainment by 2020. The other was pushing through the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (aka the stimulus), which to date, has pumped an estimated $6.5 billion into the nation’s public colleges and universities. As administration officials look back on their first year, they need to consider the possibility that the stimulus may end up doing little to advance the president’s goal and may even frustrate progress toward it. New America Foundation

Florez calls for college fee caps - Another Valley lawmaker wants to limit fee hikes at state colleges and universities, where steep increases have fueled protests. Fresno Bee

UC supporters swell to nearly 300,000 strong; large rallies planned - Working to combat a steep slide in state support for higher education, advocates for the University of California are planning large rallies in Sacramento this spring to persuade lawmakers that public higher education should be a funding priority. UCLA Today

Students sharpen attack on UC costs with satire - It's been a seriously dramatic year at the University of California, where hundreds of students seized buildings, demonstrated and shut down regents meetings last fall to protest rising tuition and the perceived privatization of the public school. San Francisco Chronicle

Less prison spending means more CSU funds - The governor recently proposed an amendment to the California Constitution that would cap spending on prisons and raise higher education funds. This proposal is in addition to a budget that will return millions of dollars to the California State University system. The Orion

Funds freed; San Marcos, SDSU can add classes - A rare bit of good budgetary news has administrators at San Diego State and Cal State San Marcos preparing to spend millions of dollars in federal stimulus money on additional classes. Union-Tribune

Bills shed light on CSU spending - How universities spend money has become a major topic of concern for students, faculty, staff, and taxpayers within the state of California due to the recent budget crisis. Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) is attempting to bring a greater sense of transparency and accountability to California's public institutions of higher education with Senate Bill 330 and Senate Bill 650. Golden Gate XPress

Fewer classes, high enrollment burdens college - Many City College students have been struggling to enroll in impacted classes and teachers are overworked due to a large number of Spring 2010 course cuts. City College cut 379 classes this semester and 330 during fall 2009, according to Terrance Hall, dean of instruction at City College. The cuts were implemented to grapple with the school’s $18 million to $20 million budget shortfall. The fall and spring cuts amount to about 6 percent of total classes offered. The Guardsman

Our View: CCC system may offer 4-year degrees - Marty Block, San Diego State University professor, dean, and director turned Assemblyman is proposing a bill that would allow some California Community Colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees in nursing and other “high demand” subjects. “For the first time, in more than a decade, [SDSU] has said they will not admit all CSU qualified freshmen,” Block said, “So somebody has to provide them with that educational access.” Daily 49er

District prepares for worst - Following the release of the governor’s mid-year budget proposal, district administrators remain wary and are preparing for any potential losses. As the final budget has not yet been passed, nothing is certain. “There’s been a variety of proposals for cuts, but everything is very much up in the air,” Contra Costa College Vice President Carol Maga said. “The governor would like to keep as much funding as possible for the community colleges.” Accent Advocate

Students for California's Future: News

February 1st - 7th, 2010

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Proposed federal budget will increase financial aid funding by $300 million for 2011 - President Obama's proposed budget for fiscal year 2011 will increase funding for financial aid programs compared to this year. The Daily Californian

With federal stimulus money gone, many schools face budget gaps - Federal stimulus money has helped avoid drastic cuts at public schools in most parts of the nation, at least so far. But with the federal money running out, many of the nation’s schools are approaching what officials are calling a “funding cliff.” New York Times

State bills reintroduced , aim to make CSU and UC records open to public - State Sen. Leland Yee, (D-San Francisco), reintroduced two bills Jan. 5 that will bring greater transparency to the state of California’s public higher-education institutions, require foundation records to be open to public inspection and will also seek to protect whistleblowers in the Cal State University/University of California systems. Daily Titan

Proposed oil tax divides education leaders - An East Bay lawmaker wants to tax oil pumped from the California ground and give the proceeds to colleges and universities, but the proposal has run afoul of the very people it was supposed to help. Assembly Bill 656 initially would have taxed companies 12.5 percent for oil and gas extracted from the state. The money would have been divided among the three public systems: community colleges, California State University and the University of California. Contra Costa Times

Building the movement - Frustrated by deep cuts to education spending and quality, momentum is building across California in support of the "Strike and Day of Action to Defend Public Education" on March 4. San Francisco Bay Guardian

Opinion: Holding the line on cuts to California universities isn't enough - We all know that 2009 was a very tough year for California's public universities. Now, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has given students — and the state — a new reason for optimism with his vow to "hold the line" on funding for education in next year's budget. I applaud the governor for his proposal to restore this year's $305 million cut to the California State University budget and to add $60 million in funding for CSU's enrollment growth. The legislature should decisively enact these measures. But let's be clear: "Holding the line" against further cuts isn't enough. Saving higher education in California will take a bold vision in Sacramento of increased funding for education over the long term. A consistent and predictable scaling up of higher education opportunities for California's high school graduates is the best path to economic recovery. Silicon Valley Mercury News

Students seeking California degrees struggle with 2010-2011 fee increases - There are thousands of students in California at a CSU or UC college working to earn their degree, but the new fall 2010-2011 tuition increases might be too much for some to handle. California College News Blog

When students strike back: the new social movement at the University of California - The next big move of the UC coalition is to hold a series of protests, rallies, and strikes throughout the state on March 4th. Under the general banner of "Defending Public Education, Defending Public Workers," this day of action will bring together teachers, students, and workers from K-PhD. The central demands are to stop the fee hikes, rehire layed off workers, increase enrollments, and bargain in good faith with the unions. The coalition is also asking to stop the re-segregation of education by protecting the educational opportunities of underrepresented students. Huffington Post

For UC's Commission on the Future, nothing is off the table - With California's public university system shackled to a shrinking budget, a group of chancellors, students and others considers ideas -- from banal to radical -- to keep quality up and costs down. Los Angeles Times

Cal State to use $51M to restore cut classes - Chancellor Charles Reed said Friday that CSU is giving campuses an extra $50.9 million for the fall 2010 term. The money will add as many as 8,100 classes, retain instructors and provide student services. California State University students could have better luck getting into classes next fall. Silicon Valley Mercury News

S.F. City College cancels summer session - Thousands of students who expected to make up missed courses or simply move their education forward will have to put those plans on hold this year because City College of San Francisco is canceling its popular summer session. San Francisco Chronicle

California community colleges top focus at state legislators hearing - A California state legislator hearing was held in Sacramento yesterday regarding the California Master Plan for Higher Education. The overall focus of the hearing was to brain storm ideas on how more students can get into college and graduate faster. One idea that came up last month in the state, was to allow California community colleges the ability to offer bachelors degrees for certain subjects. California College News Blog

Turning a new leaf on degrees - California’s higher education institutions might be getting a much-needed overhaul. Legislation being drafted by state Assemblyman Marty Block, D-San Diego, would allow community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees. The State Hornet

Crisp: Presidential nod to community colleges - Everyone who works at a community college -- as I do -- enjoys hearing this American institution mentioned in a speech -- as President Obama did during his State of the Union address last week. Scripps News

Students for California's Future: News

January 25th - 31st, 2010

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College students support Obama's ideas - President Obama called in his State of the Union address Wednesday night for a revitalization of the nation’s community colleges, cheaper loans for college students, and a plan to require students who have graduated to pay only 10 percent of their income on their debt load. OC Register

Denham introduces 'Student Protection Act' - Sen. Jeff Denham, R-Merced, today introduced the “Student Protection Act,” which would require California State University and the University of California to provide a waiting period for tuition and fee increases, and a cap on the amount of any hike. The Californian

Governor's plan limits higher education - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed amendment in which General Fund spending caps would be imposed on state prisons and public universities should be rejected, according to a brief from the Legislative Analyst's office. Golden Gate XPress

Lawmakers, universities balance budgets with significant tuition hikes - As students around the country anxiously wait for college acceptance letters, their parents are sweating the looming tuition bills at public universities. Los Angeles Times

Study accuses California's higher education systems of poor coordination - California’s three systems of public higher education need to coordinate better, eliminate duplicate programs and make it easier for students to transfer from community colleges to Cal State or University of California campuses, according to a report released today by the state Legislative Analyst's Office. Los Angeles Times

Class cuts wreak havoc at California universities - California's budget crisis came into stark focus in the halls of Sacramento State last week, where many students returning for spring semester were turned away from classes they had hoped to get into, or strained from hallways to hear lectures in classes that had enrolled way more students than there were seats. Sacramento Bee

CSU to receive $377 million from state - The California State University system is expected to receive $377 million to restore its budget; this will be more than $500 million less than the CSU board of trustees requested at its last meeting. Daily 49er

State universities want more students to graduate - For years, American colleges and universities have focused on getting more students to seek higher education. Now they want to make sure more of their students leave campus with a diploma. USA Today

Students continue to protest change in academic calendar - The California State University, Stanislaus administration is moving forward with plans to eliminate Winter Term for the 2010-2011 school year, stating that a new calendar with longer semesters and a new intersession will benefit the majority of students, but faculty and students are continuing to fight for the instructional period. Turlock Journal

Local community college students face unknown future - Twenty-one-year-old Betty Morales is in her third year at Oxnard College and has been trying to transfer to Cal State, Channel Islands, since May 2009. She has enough credits to transfer and has earned her A.A. degree, but is lacking the required courses she needs for her program of interest. Her plans to transfer have been delayed an entire year because of one class, which has been full two semesters in a row. Ventura County Reporter

Students for California's Future: News

January 18th - 24th, 2010

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No Room at College: What to do When You're Closed Out of Your Courses - The crisis is nationwide: Public universities in economically-distressed states (not only California, but Arizona, Florida, Michigan, and Ohio come to mind) simply don't have enough available spots in many classes to accommodate a student population growing at 4 1/2 percent each year. What should students do? Huffington Post

Students Face a Class Struggle at State Colleges - Welcome to state-run higher education in California. Mr. Macias is just one of more than 26,000 students at San Francisco State, and now educational opportunities cost more and are harder to grasp and even harder to hold onto than ever before. Mr. Macias’s experience of truncated offerings, furloughed professors and crowded classrooms is typical. New York Times

University of California applications set record - University of California campuses from Davis to San Diego saw dramatic increases in the number of transfer students applying for the fall of 2010, fueling a rise in applications statewide to their largest number ever despite steep hikes in student fees, according to data released Thursday by UC's Office of the President. The Modesto Bee

Waiting lists to be established at most UC campuses, regents say - The University of California will break with tradition and establish waiting lists for freshman admission as it copes with uncertain state funding, officials said Wednesday. Los Angeles Times

Community colleges struggle to stay afloat - When the California legislature finally passed last summer’s 2009-2010 budget, funding to the state’s community colleges was cut by $812 million, said Dean Murakami of the California Federation of Teachers (CFT). Additionally, over $1 billion in funding is being deferred until July so that it counts towards the next fiscal year. Martinez News-Gazette

Orange Coast College students can expect fewer classes - Students preparing to attend Orange Coast College this summer should brace themselves for uncertainties, including the possibility of a 50% reduction in the number of classes offered. It’s the result of a state budget crisis that’s changing the face of higher education in California. Daily Pilot