Campus Meets March 25 to Advocate for Preserving CSU Budget
Mass Rally to Follow for Cal State Fullerton 50th Anniversary Snapshot
March 21, 2008 :: No. 192
Cal State Fullerton students, staff, faculty members and administrators will meet Tuesday, March 25, to advocate for the California State University and mobilize the campus community to preserve funding for the CSU, in the face of the state’s mounting budget crisis.
“We invite you to join us in our commitment to preserve access to affordable, high-quality education at Cal State Fullerton and throughout the California State University,” reads the campuswide memo signed by President Milton A. Gordon; Peter Dupree, chief steward of the CSUF University Police Association; Diana Guerin, chair of the Academic Senate; Janette Hyder, chief steward of the CSUF chapter of Academic Professionals of California; Jay Jimenez, president/chief steward of the CSUF chapter of California State University Employees Union; Mougo Nyaggah, CSUF chapter president of the California Faculty Association; and Heather Williams, president of Associated Students Inc.
CSU Trustee Debra S. Farar is among those scheduled to address attendees at the 11 a.m. meeting in the Titan Student Union, along with representatives of the various campus groups hosting the session.
“Gov. Arnold Schwarznegger has proposed cutting more than $386 million from the CSU, as a means to help reduce a $16 billion statewide deficit, despite data indicating that for every $1 the state invests in the CSU, California reaps a $4.41 return,” said Frances Teves, director of state relations and advocacy for Cal State Fullerton.
The meeting will bring together various segments of the campus community, including unions representing faculty and staff members, to collaborate in sending a “strong message to the governor and Legislature,” said Teves.
The heart of that message is “the CSU is the solution,” noted Mougo Nyaggah, president of the CSUF chapter of the California Faculty Association, which has adopted that phrase, in concert with the CSU, as a slogan for the statewide advocacy effort.
“No budget cuts — that’s key,” said Nyaggah, who sent an e-mail today to faculty members urging them to attend the meeting, announce it in their classes and consider bringing their students.
Following the session, attendees will join a noontime rally at the university’s Becker Amphitheater, culminating in a 50th anniversary snapshot of the campus community.
“We’re asking students to come together to show their support for preserving the future for students of today and tomorrow,” said Anthony Martinez, chief governmental officer for the Associated Students Inc.Bird’s-Eye View: News photographers and videographers are invited to the roof of the Nutwood Parking Structure (corner of State College Boulevard and Nutwood Avenue) at 12:30 p.m. for the photo of the day.
| Media Contacts: | Christopher Bugbee, Public Affairs, 657-278-8487 or cbugbee@fullerton.edu |