There are few things more powerful than having the president of one of the nation’s largest universities and the state’s governor on your side. Well, at least conventional wisdom would say that.
Despite the objections of ASU President Michael Crow and Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, the state Senate is calling for a massive $235 million cut to the state university system. This is $65 million more than Brewer’s proposed $170 million in cuts, which would have far-reaching effects of their own.
Brewer wrote in a guest editorial in The Arizona Republic on Tuesday that state budget cuts “should not devastate our state priorities of public safety, education and assistance for the most needy.”
We wholeheartedly agree with the governor and are glad to hear that she does not support the Senate’s budget. We also hope she’ll be able to hold to this commitment under political pressure.
Though the proposed $170 million in cuts is by no means chump change, we would rather have that number become reality than the $235 million the Senate favors.
Even in the face of a Legislature that doesn’t value education, ASU must still improve its quality of education. Otherwise, all the progress that has occurred over the past decade will have been for naught.
“We, nonetheless, still have to find a way to make the University successful no matter what,” Crow said in a meeting with The State Press editorial board Tuesday.
This begs the question: If lawmakers won’t listen to Brewer and Crow on education, how can we get them to listen to students’ concerns?
Today, Arizona’s student leaders are giving us a chance to do just that. The Arizona Students’ Association is organizing protests on all four of ASU’s campuses, as well as at NAU and UA, to show student opposition to these gargantuan education cuts. The rallies will be on the Tempe campus at 11:50 a.m. north of the Memorial Union, on the Downtown campus at 11:00 a.m. on Taylor Mall, on the West campus at 11:30 a.m. on Fletcher Lawn, and on the Polytechnic campus at 12:15 p.m. at the SU West Patio.
Student attendance at these rallies is crucial. With tuition exceeding $9,000 for some in-state students next year and another massive round of cuts looming, students cannot afford to become apathetic. Turn up. Be loud.
Let your state senators and representatives know that education is a priority for their constituents. Write letters and call your legislative district’s elected officials. If you don’t know your elected officials, you can find who they are and how to contact them on azleg.gov, the Arizona State Legislature’s website.
The word “dire” is not too apocalyptic in this case. Crow told the editorial board that should more rounds of cuts go into effect, the University would be forced to start cutting financial aid, making school less accessible all around.
If prominence won’t influence our legislators, perhaps sheer numbers will. Should they receive a slew of calls and letters and see the number of students turning out to protest, they may just vote to save education.
It’s our future. Will you turn out?
