Taking Up the Fight

Something to be excited about: A campaign wants to freeze current UC and Cal State resident undergraduate tuition for the next five years. In addition, any remaining fee increases cannot exceed the inflation index. Best of all, this campaign is the first student-led ballot initiative.

Under the leadership of Students and Parents for Tuition Relief Now, students from 30 UC and Cal State campuses across the state are working towards collecting 43,000 signatures by April in order for the initiative to appear on next year’s November ballot.

The cause that Tuition Relief Now fights for is not only for current students, but also for those who couldn’t attend college because of the expensive tuition. A recent study from the Public Policy Institute of California reported that an overwhelming 84 percent said the cost of college is a major obstacle in obtaining a higher education. The inability of California’s public schools to provide an affordable college education will undoubtedly have ramifications for the state’s future.

The fact that the Tuition Relief Now campaign exists is a testament to the unimpressive record of the UC Regents and the University of California Student Association, groups that are supposed to represent student interests. Unfortunately, the regents and the student association have demonstrated a poor track record when it comes to getting results in lowering fees.

The initiative would also bring the issue of increasing costs at public universities to the forefront and would force legislators, UC administrators and voters to take notice of the current conditions. Too often, when fees must be raised again, we’re forced to accept a terrible but seemingly inevitable situation. However, Tuition Relief Now shows that there are other ways for students to contest these rising costs. So if you see your fellow students out on the streets petitioning, be sure to sign it.