tuition 
|
|
Wed Apr 27, 2011 at 04:41:12 PM EDT
|
Several dozen students are in Hour 6 of an occupation of the office of Rutgers President Richard McCormick, with students in support of them rallying outside the Old Queens building. The issues, as outlined in a press release to media and presented to the university are:
 Pillows & laptops: Click to enlarge
freeze tuition fees
eliminate, for the first 10 transcripts, the school's $7 charge for transcripts
voting seats on the Board of Governors for students (3), faculty and staff (1 each)
disaffiliation from the "corporate-controlled Fair Labor Assn"
1-year tuition freeze in light of tuition doubling over the last 10 years.
fair & speedy arbitration for Rutgers' workers re: the two-year salary freeze affecting them.
They're settled in. The shoes are off, the pillows are out and the laptops are open. And they're taking their inspiration, says Molly Magier of Rutgers United Students Against Sweatshops, from USAS members at the University of Wisconsin, who occupied their administrative building to also protest the privatization of their University and skyrocketing tuition just yesterday. The U of W is in Madison, site of the massive community response to Gov. Scott Walker's efforts to end collective bargaining in that state.
A facebook page - Save Public Education - Rutgers - carries a letter to the university president.
The university's statement says McCormick Friday and he's hip to their demands (okay, so that's the gist).
The students in the administrative offices have been told they need to vacate by 5pm, some 20 minutes from now. You can follow along via their Twitter feed @RutgersStudent
|
|
Discuss
:: (3
Comments)
|
|
|
|
Sat Apr 24, 2010 at 03:12:20 PM EDT
|
|
Here is the facebook group with details of the event
http://www.facebook.com/event....
I would also like to share a persynal story about how I became active in higher education advocacy. In the Fall semester of my junior year at Ramapo College way back in 2005, I made the mistake of voting for Jon Corzine in the gubernatorial election (I corrected that by voting for Dagget in 2009, and I still have his bumper sticker on my car as a repudiation of Trenton politics)
Anyway, in Spring 2006, Corzine announced massive budget cuts to higher education and schools were mobilizing. However, my school was lazy to mobilize, due to the discouragement of these actions by our alternate student trustee, Steve Bloom. He was basically resigned to the idea that the state was in fiscal trouble and thus, strong armed members of student government as well as other groups on campus to not go along with me. Unphased, I went down to Trenton and was the only representative from my campus.
I was invited to speak about something close to my heart. At the beginning of the academic year, I joined the nascent student-run recycling program at Ramapo, and a couple of months later, spearheaded an expansion into 3 dorms (we decided to do door-to-door because the recycling bins in the trashroom were being contaminated constantly, so much that I put up flyers telling students to instead put their recycling out in front of the doors once a week). Well, we had plans for expansion when these budget cuts happened, and our supervisor, Carmela, who was a sustainability coordinator, was being 86ed by the administration. I had a chance to talk about this unique program, and at the end, Assemblypersyn Diegnan shook my hand and complimented my story (as well as the bandana I was wearing).
So, even if you are not a college student or public school teacher, I suggest you get out and support education.
|
|
Discuss
:: (0
Comments)
|
|
|
|
Tue Apr 06, 2010 at 10:02:54 AM EDT
|
|
Recently, I found out that Mahwah, home to Ramapo College (my alma mater), passed a resolution asking for a $100 fee for full time students (half for part time) to support their police, fire, etc. They were joined by other college towns such as Wayne and Montclair.
Of all the stupid ideas that have been churned out by the greedy municipalities this one is the worst. Although I graduated from Ramapo three years ago, I feel like future generations are being jerked around by municipal greed.
In fact, college students have been jerked around by municipalities for many years. Maybe if we didn't have to subsidize all these 566 municipalities (489 of which have their own police force), and 616 school districts, maybe we'd have some money to create a permanent trust fund for the appropriate funding of our college campuses.
When Governor Corzine shut down the state government 4 years ago, there was one item that was being ignored by the media, and that was the cuts to education. Instead, the North/Central Jersey faction of the Democratic Party and the South Jersey faction of the Democratic Party started fighting over whether they should allocate half or whole of the sales tax increase, respectively, towards these perverse subsidies and they shut down the state. Where were the people that believed that maybe all of the sales tax increase (instead of the half proposed by the North/Central faction) should go to debt reduction, because THAT'S WHY WE RAISED THE SALES TAX TO BEGIN WITH.
Everyone talks about making sacrifices, how come the municipalities aren't doing the same.
|
|
Discuss
:: (1
Comments)
|
|
|
|
Tue Mar 30, 2010 at 05:55:45 PM EDT
|
|
One day, I was thinking about all the cuts to higher education that have been made over these last few years, and I was wondering, we have a pension trust fund, we have a transportation trust fund, why don't we have a higher ed trust fund???
Proposal:
The higher ed trust fund will use certain dedicated revenue sources, as well as state and federal funding at the discretion of the government to fund only the following items: funding of staff and faculty, course offerings, lab equipment, computer systems, libraries, facility upkeep, specialized services and coops/internships.
This narrow scope shall insure that the monies only go to the big ticket yet important items in education. All other expenses for colleges (ie: administration) must be paid out of the general fund, and no funding can be used for college sports.
The dedicated sources of funding for the trust fund shall be as follows:
35% of all income tax revenues
90% of all lottery revenues
50% of all corporate taxes
Any other state and federal funding
It is projected that this trust fund alone could generate three to four times the revenues of the current state higher education budget in its entirety, which should be used to slash the cost of tuition for in-state students, if not eliminate it altogether.
Furthermore, I would recommend that the trust fund receive comparable protections from raids as the Social Security Trust Fund has. We also may need a constitutional amendment illustrating the designated funding sources and their designated purposes.
|
|
Discuss
:: (0
Comments)
|
|
|
|
Fri Aug 08, 2008 at 02:19:22 PM EDT
|
If you're a college student in NJ, you just can't catch a break these days. Today's news concerns interest rates on loans:According to figures released Thursday, N.J. Class loans will be available for 7.62 percent, up from 5.9 percent last year. Still, state officials said they were pleased with the new rate, given the turmoil in the financial markets, the paper said. This news comes on top of recent tuition hikes:Two of the biggest public universities in New Jersey -- Rowan and Rutgers -- this month approved overall tuition and fee increases of about 8 percent and 6.5 percent, respectively, for the 2008-09 year. The average increase in tuition and fees at public universities in the United States last year was 6.6 percent, according to the College Board. That's just a sampling of the tuition increases facing students at NJ colleges as they head back to school this fall. Other Colleges are passing the increases off on their students as well:Students at the Hudson County Community College will be hit with an 8.1 percent tuition hike in the fall, while New Jersey City University students will confront a 7 percent hike, officials said. Another factor contributing to the problem are the state budget issues which lead to cuts in state aid:This fiscal year, state aid to New Jersey colleges and universities was cut about 10 percent and contributed to an overall 7.5 percent increase in tuition. State aid support has been inadequate for years, and higher education officials contend this makes it difficult for the state to expand and take in more state students. The Star Ledger ran an Op-Ed calling for the State to seek innovative ways of reducing education higher costs giving us this troubling statistic:Over the past 15 years, tuition at public colleges and universities in New Jersey has outpaced the rate of inflation as well as the growth in median family income. Given the dismal conditions of the state and national economies, higher education is unlikely to receive significant funding increases to prevent additional tuition increases. Not being able to afford or receive an education will only hurt the economy further, but I don't see a reversal in this trend on the horizon. Thurman Hart even talked recently about education being key to energy policy. None of these issues exist in a vacuum and while I don't know what the breaking point is, if we keep going in this direction we may find out.
|
|
Discuss
:: (2
Comments)
|
|
|
|
Thu Jul 12, 2007 at 11:44:03 PM EDT
|
|
I was dismayed -- though perhaps not surprised -- by the article 5.8% tuition hike awaits Rowan students in fall in Today's Sunbeam. After all, we're used to the increases in tuition, but it's important to remember again that this means that even public state colleges are slipping out of reach of the poor. Look at what these 5-8% increase have done in only six years:
While a typical in-state undergraduate will pay about $18,500, a typical out-of-state undergraduate will pay $26,468.
By comparison, in 2001 in-state students paid about $12,000 for tuition, room and board, and out-of-state students paid about $16,500.
That means there are probably college students who are paying 50% more than their older siblings did for the same classes.
|
|
There's More...
:: (1
Comments, 199 words in story)
|
|
|
|
Wed Feb 21, 2007 at 10:14:23 PM EST
|
|
Earlier this evening, I spoke as part of a panel at a student-led community forum at Montclair State University. Our topic was student debt, its causes and its effects. I'd like to publically thank Peggy Healy (and her fellow students) for her efforts in bringing this event about and recognize Assemblyman Thomas Giblin, who spoke very eloquently about the need to fight the good fight on all fronts - worker's rights, student's rights, fair trade, etc. What follows is a (linked) copy of my remarks (x-posted from Xpatriated Texan
The future of the American dream is in jeopardy. If current trends continue, by the time my children are ready to enter college, a bachelors degree will be a mark of privilege and wealth rather than a stepping stone to a better life. This is not an exaggeration or possibly not much of one.
Since I graduated high school in 1986, the average cost of tuition at a four-year public institution of higher learning has risen from $1,318 per year to $5,132, an average increase of $181.62 per year (data is from The College Board). Thats a three hundred and eighty-nine percent increase in just tuition. This doesnt include mandatory fees, room and board, books and supplies, or anything else. It is simply the lowest possible barrier into college. If this average rate of increase holds true over the next eighteen years, then my twins will face a college tuition bill of $24,550.62 per year.
|
|
There's More...
:: (1
Comments, 886 words in story)
|
|
|
|
Thu Jul 20, 2006 at 08:30:38 AM EDT
|
|
The cost of the UMDNJ scandals is now estimated at over $243 million. Gov. Corinze used the words "tragic" and "disgraceful" to describe the situation: he's being overly kind. Examples in today's article include hiring a relative who had lost his license due to misconduct, medicaid fraud, double billing, improper lobbying, and paying $35.2 million for a $5.9 million contract.
Under that contract, Stern's auditing team found that $301,660.77 was billed for the simple removal of two malicious software programs -- one so-called "Trojan horse" and one Spyware protocol -- that were found on just one desktop computer.
New Jersey set to Alter Pension Plan, as former Wall Street executive Governor Corzine pushes for the plan to move to a more aggressive investment plan. The plan is currently managed by public employees. The unions are against this proposal.
In magnitude and in speed, it may be the most drastic change in any state’s pension investment policy, pension experts say. With a new emphasis on diversified investments like hedge funds, emerging markets and commodities rather than the traditional mix of stocks and bonds, the proposal will transform New Jersey from being one of the most conservative states to one of the most aggressive, along with New York, California and Oregon.
New Jersey's Death Penalty Study Commission took testimony yesterday both for and against executions. Its report is due in November.
Rowan University also raises its tuition by 8%, the maximum allowed by this year's budget law. Student trustee Mathew Browne and Student Government Association President Mike Ward "plan to organize an effort to unite college students across the state to be a voice in Trenton during what has been a trying time for higher education."
The state will protect another 90,000 acres by classifying them as nongrowth areas. The change will require approval by the counties.
Public Advocate Ronald K. Chen and state rate counsel Seema M. Singh want verizon to continue four free calls to directory assistance per month. Verizon wants the service reclassified as 'competitive' which would allow them to charge whatever they please. Apparently they argue that phone books are available for free.
What's on your mind?
|
|
Discuss
:: (3
Comments)
|
|
|
|
|
| Featured Stories |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
