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Statewide rallies held to oppose cuts to higher education in California
Hundreds of Cal State Northridge students protested the rising costs of education. The marches and rallies took place throughout the day Wednesday, March 2, on campus.
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Statewide rallies held to oppose cuts to higher education in California
Statewide rallies held to oppose cuts to higher education in California
Students at several Southern California universities took part Wednesday in a statewide day of protest against large proposed cuts to public higher education.
If state lawmakers approve Governor Jerry Brown’s proposed budget, the University of California and the California State University systems would each endure half-billion dollar funding cuts. College administrators have made up for the cuts in recent years by raising student tuition.
Cal State L.A. undergraduate Eduardo Ortiz said he joined a protest on his campus because those increases have forced him to juggle school work with two part-time jobs and two internships. "It’s super hard, definitely, especially when you have loans that you owe in the past, and when you have to pay to support yourself with no help. As a student it definitely is hard."
Tution for Ortiz and other Cal State students has jumped 60 percent in three years. Student activists hope their rallies will help convince lawmakers to isolate public universities from cuts.
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