Students for Quality Education (SQE) is holding a rally on Thursday at Cal State Long Beach in protest of increasing tuition prices and budget cuts.
SQE is a student-run organization that fights for educational rights across the Cal State University system. Representatives spent last week visiting classes to raise awareness of the upcoming rally.
“SQE is talking to students about March 1 and March 5,” representative Erika Flores said. “March 1 is the National Day of Action for Education. March 5, or March for March, is a centralized action at the State Capitol in Sacramento.”
The rally on campus this Thursday is simply a prelude to a much bigger protest that will be taking place in Sacramento next week. SQE chapters representing CSUs, UCs and community colleges will be making the trip up north to fight against California higher education.
In the past year, student fees have been increased twice, adding almost $700 to students’ annual tuition. A 12 percent increase in July and 9 percent increase in November were approved to help set off $650 million in budget cuts that were passed over the summer.
“The cutting of programs, services, and deteriorating work conditions for faculty and staff leaves students paying more for less and we’ve had enough,” Flores said.
Thursday’s rally will take place in the Upper Quad of campus and will host a day’s worth of activities that include teach-ins, art stations, and even a flash mob by PAC Modern. The goal is to get students involved in SQE’s fight against “the privatization of California public schools.”
“We will not stand idly by while our public education becomes privatized,” Flores said. “Education is a right.”