Leaders of a California-born protest movement will try to spread their message across the nation Thursday, with student rallies, panel discussions and other events to express opposition to budget cuts and tuition hikes at public colleges and universities.
Organizers say they hope the events will dramatize the frustration that has been building as the recession forces deep cuts in higher education budgets, especially in California, where the fiscal situation is especially dire. Colleges there have raised tuition sharply, reduced enrollment and cut faculty pay.
Students in California have declared Thursday as a Day of Action to Defend Public Education. Rallies are planned for nearly every college and university campus in the state, in addition to several K-12 schools. Organizers said there would be events in 30 states.
"There are student activists all over the country who are looking to California as something to emulate," said Doug Singsen, 32, a graduate student at the City University of New York who has helped organize events outside of California. "We want this to be the beginning of a movement that gets stronger."
Students in California have declared Thursday as a Day of Action to Defend Public Education. Rallies are planned for nearly every college and university campus in the state, in addition to several K-12 schools. Organizers said there would be events in 30 states.
"There are student activists all over the country who are looking to California as something to emulate," said Doug Singsen, 32, a graduate student at the City University of New York who has helped organize events outside of California. "We want this to be the beginning of a movement that gets stronger."