With undergraduate fees increasing by 94 percent over the
past six years, the first student-led ballot initiative proposes a five-year
freeze on hiking tuition costs at the University of California and California
State University institutions for resident undergraduate students.
Supported by the nongovernment organization Greenlining
Action, a group calling itself Tuition Relief Now has proposed the College
Affordability Act of 2008, which would block future education fees from
surpassing the inflation rate. The Student Affirmative Action Committee
oversees the campaign at UCSD, which has until mid-April to collect the 434,000
valid signatures required to qualify the act for the November 2008 election
ballot.
“Imagine how it’ll feel for a student to walk in the
governor’s building and present half a million petition signatures,” Campaign
Director and UC Berkeley student Chris Vaeth said. “That puts a lot of power
into the hands of students — something we’ve never had before.”
Last month, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed a
$332-million reduction in state funding to the UC system. The state’s
$14.5-billion budget deficit will potentially provide the UC system with
hundreds of millions less than the UC Board of Regents’ request for next
academic year, and the cuts are projected to impact enrollment growth, tuition
costs and individual university programs.
“This budget proposal will have serious impacts on our
ability to deliver on our mission for our students and for the people of
UC President Robert C. Dynes said in a press release. “State funding for the
university is not an expenditure but an investment — an investment that
produces real returns through an educated workforce, a dynamic economy, job
creation and new tax revenue.”
The budget reduction would increase undergraduate tuition
fees by at least 7 percent for 2008-09, depending on the regents’ final
decision regarding financial aid allocations.
In 1960, the California Master Plan for Higher Education was
developed to act as guidance for the UC system’s goals. The document proposed
tuition-free education for resident undergraduates, allowing only housing and
supplementary fees. But in the past four decades, fees have grown
exponentially, contradicting the statements held within the Master Plan,
according to Vaeth.
UC undergraduates’ tuition in 1979-80 was $736 in comparison
to this academic year’s $7,511 fee.
TRN was developed with the objective of redirecting the UC
system back toward its original manifesto of a more affordable college education,
though the effort’s limited finances have necessitated heavy student
participation.
Despite its small funding base, the campaign has seen
success in growth due to a large volunteer base and an organized, credible
nonprofit institution — key strengths that separate the initiative from past
student-led organizations, according to
Marshall
senior Nicole McElroy.
McElroy, also the SAAC chair, said she became involved
because of her $14,000 debt from student loans.
“Our tuition has doubled in the past six years, but not
necessarily the quality of our education,” McElroy said. “There’s less
one-on-one between faculty and students, and new buildings are constantly made
— but it doesn’t seem like our increased tuition is being directly targeted to
benefit students.”
The act would impose a 1-percent tax on
residents with annual incomes exceeding $1 million, requiring that 60 percent
of the estimated $2-billion revenue to go to UC and CSU institutions. The
remaining educational funds would be distributed toward K-14 education.
The initiative has gained support from students and parents
who are tired of inflating tuition fees, Vaeth said.
“Students realized something cohesive had to be done to stop
the fees from hiking up again,” he said.
Additionally, the legislation would create an accountability
board consisting of students, administrators and faculty members to monitor the
allocation of the new tax’s funds.
The accountability panel would help make budget
distributions more transparent, according to A.S. All-Campus Senator Utsav
Gupta.
“This campaign is an effective way to bring light to an
issue that’s affecting a lot of students in
and hopefully we’ll be able to see some reform,” Gupta said. “The legislation
will affect two million resident UC and CSU undergraduates — I think we can
definitely get some good change out there for students.”
