March 4th is a day for public higher education. We're calling on all students, faculty, staff, parents, alumni and community supporters to come to the Capitol to educate our legislators on the importance of public education (K-12, Community College, CSU & UC).
We'll be giving lessons about all aspects of the value of public education from the history of the Master Plan to the stories of students who can't get enough courses to graduate. Hope to see you there.
11:00am - 1:00pm
Capitol Building, North Steps, Sacramento, CA 95814
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009 almost 400 Sacramento State students, faculty and media correspondents joined the Sac State Coalition in mourning the death of California's committment to the higher education master plan at a "Mock Funeral".
The Mock Funeral began with a small march around the Library Quad, gathering the first 100 or so students. As the march grew it's span encompassed the entirety of the Library Quad!!!
As the crowd began to grow larger than expected, faster than expected, we moved into the grassy area of the Library Quad and proceeded to start the "funeral service" in rememberence to California's committment to the higher education master plan. Even the sun came out in attendence...
There was a small coffin placed in the middle of the gathering, symbolizing the Mock Funeral. A number of student and faculty speakers rallied the crowd, creating a beautiful energy that hadn't been present at Sac State in a long time.
Students went into an uproar when they learned that a now ex-senior official in the Chancellor's Office had wasted over $150,000 in misc. travel expenses over a three year period, with charges like $400 a night suites at 5 star hotels...
We passed out note cards and asked students to write down what fee increases, furloughs, decreased class offerings, part-time lecturer cuts & other affects of budget cuts meant to them. As the speeches finished up we had everyone put their cards into the coffin.
One of the lead organizers, Alma Lopez, then picked up the coffin and began the march to the administration building on campus... 100's, plural, followed, chanting in unison!
Students were upset, even angry, charging the air with an emotional electricity, fueling the peaceful and civil demonstration in rememberence of a time where higher education was accessable, affordable, and rich in its quality.
Students marching outside of President Gonzalez's Office. A.S.I. student government President Robert Torres stands by idlely as the protest marches past!
As everyone made it out of the administration building, safely and unharmed, we rallied out front of the President's Office window. Below is a video that a student took of the march and how it ended, safely and peacefully! A great success...
To everyone who was able to make it out... Thank you for joining the Sac State Coalition in the mourning process.
However, please remember that we are still here, within the higher education system, and that we must take full advantage of the quality of education that's before us or we are only hurting ourselves... So we will fight for better accessability, affordability and quality of public higher education, for ourselves, for family and friends, and for the future of California... but we will also continue to learn in the never ending progression of ourselves, taking great pride in that.
The Sac State Coalition are Sacramento based students, teachers, and individuals organizing and advocating for all students against fee increases, mandated furloughs, decreased class offerings, closed enrollments & other issues in an effort to preserve the accessibility, affordability and quality of higher education in the State of California.
The purpose of our Mock Funeral is to raise awareness about the current, statewide higher education crisis. Thursday, December 3rd, 2009 at 12pm in the Library Quad there will be Sacramento State students and faculty voicing their concerns about the cuts to higher education, specifically at the California State University (CSU) level. Students will be marching and carrying a mock casket that represents the death of California’s commitment to the affordability, accessibility, and quality of higher education, established in the California Higher Education Master Plan. Students will be carrying tomb stones with written messages symbolizing the cuts that have been made to higher education and how they are impacted by fee increases, reduction of classes offered, mandated furloughs, closed enrollment & delayed graduation rates.
For more information contact: Robert Graham at 916-833-3903 or Alma Lopez 209-914-5022
