Hayward Walkout protests Cal State deal

By Ricci Graham, STAFF WRITER
HAYWARD -- Fed up with what they consider an assault on funding for public education, Cal State Hayward students and faculty members on Wednesday staged a walkout to protest funding cuts to higher education.

An estimated 500 students and faculty members gathered at the foot of Alexander Meikeljohn Hall.

There, they displayed placards before a number of speakers took to the steps to decry the "compact" agreement that was recently brokered between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and leaders of both the CSU and University of California systems.

After taking in the message of a few speakers, the protesters quietly marched down Harder Road to Mission Boulevard. They stood on the corners and held up signs that read "Education is a right -- Not a privilege" and "Save CSU. No More Cuts" as passing motorists honked their horns in support.

"I've never seen times like this," said Tom McCoy, the president of the Hayward Chapter of the California Faculty Association and a communications professor at the university. "The governor's budget cuts really represent a break in the contract California made to its citizens to make education available to everyone."

Protests such as Wednesday's walkout have become commonplace recently, as students and faculty members throughout the system begin to feel the impact of the state's education funding crisis.

"There have been a lot of rallies at almost all of the campuses," said Shoshana Hebshi, a communications representative with the California Faculty Association. "Pretty much every campus has had some sort of activism over the budget cuts."

Leaders of the CSU system recently approved $240 million in cuts to the 23-campus system, along with a 14 percent hike in tuition. The system is expected to increase tuition by another 8 percent in each of the next two years.

The cuts and tuition increase, students assert, will make it virtually impossible for working- or middle-class students to go to college.

"We want to send a message that we're organized and we're really in opposition to the cuts and tuition increases,"said Trisha Tahmasbi, a senior political science major. "We're paying a whole lot more and getting a whole lot less."

What has outraged students and faculty members the most is the agreement that was reached between the governor and leaders of the CSU and UC systems during a closed door meeting on May 11.

The governor and university heads reached what is called a "compact" agreement, which required CSU and UC systems to accept tuition hikes and budget and enrollment cuts next fiscal year with the understanding that funding will be restored in future years.

The two systems have already denied fall admission to thousands of students, funneling them to junior colleges throughout the state, an approach that is being supported by the governor.

But accepting the cuts in a closed meeting has infuriated students and faculty members who are now starting to feel the impact of the reduction in services and increase in tuition.

"It's already hard enough to pay for school," said Charles Cole, also a political science major. "The thing that bothers me most is the chancellor made people believe that the students were in favor of the cuts."

CSU students and faculty members say they feel betrayed by CSU Chancellor Charles B. Reed, who accepted the compact offer. They also contend that the compact violates the state's Master Plan for public education, a blueprint that guarantees access to the CSU system to all qualified students.

"We feel we were sold out by the chancellor," said Ray Granoff, a senior political science major.

"Instead of protecting our interest, the chancellor was more interested in cutting a deal," added Granoff, who is also a member of the "Save The CSU Student Coalition."

Assemblywoman Ellen Corbett (D-San Leandro) was unable to attend the walkout. But she was there in spirit.

"I very much applaud the fact that the students today decided to march through the streets of Hayward to publicize the fact that the governor's proposal means shutting down access to higher education to students in California," said Corbett, a Cal State Hayward alumnus. "The governor's compact does everything from reduce student outreach programs to raise tuition.

"It's very important that people who care about higher education speak up."