Today, students across the country are taking action as part of the National Day of Action to Defend Education. You can read more about it and find local actions here, read Campus Progress’s statement here, and take action here.
The latest updates:
The national day of action to defend public education kicked off this morning with a blockade of the entrances to the University of California at Santa Cruz. Approximately 400 students are blocking the entrances to the school, infuriating commuters. As one car tried to tag along behind a police car to get through the crowd the driver has “run over” 4 students ending in at least one broken leg.
-Via @occupyca on Twitter
Students protesting at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa, demanding free education for poor citizens, were dispersed by the police when they were sprayed with water hoses.
-Via iafrica.com
To get students excited about action all over the UC system today a prominent building at UC Riverside has been “decorated” with an encouraging banner.
-Via Occupy California
Tomorrow, students from around the country will be taking action against budget cuts to education, and all of the tuition hikes, enrollment caps, cuts to statestudentaid, lay-offs, wage cuts, furloughs, and other problems that they have caused. Here at Campus Progress, we hope that college administrations, state governments, and Congress are paying close attention: students are hurting, angry, and organized. You can see if there are actions planned in your area here.
There are already some great ways to follow this mobilization (for example, http://studentactivism.net/ has a great maps and a great blog), but I wanted to add two more options (below). We will also be posting some updates on this site tomorrow.
Exchange is reporting that a new study shows that those that graduate with student debt are significantly less likely to have savings or investments, less likely to own a home, and more likely to have a mortgage if they do:
Analysis showed that among postsecondary graduates aged 20 to 45 in 2007, 42% of those who had borrowed money to finance their schooling had savings and investments, compared with 52% of other postsecondary graduates, all other factors being equal.
The results suggest that, while student debt continues to affect individuals’ finances after graduation, borrowers who complete their postsecondary education received labour market returns to their education similar to those of non-borrowers.
This study adds to previous research research showing student debt having a big impact on important life decisions, like getting married, choosing a career, and having kids.
The New York Times published a great editorial yesterday supporting progressive immigration reform, and the four brave students that are walking from Miami to DC to support the DREAM Act, stand up for worker’s rights, stop the separation of families, and create a fair pathway to citizenship. The Times argued that we should not wait until the economy improves to pass immigration reform, as some have suggested:
The Obama administration has vowed to press ahead with reform this year. Given the hard economic times, the politics may be bleaker even than in 2007 when reform was scuttled in an ugly battle. The need is just as real — for the undocumented and for the country.
America needs to shut the path to illegal entry and employment while opening smoother and more rational routes to legal immigration. Opponents of reform say the downturn is a terrible time to fix the system, but they are wrong. When the recovery comes, the country will need a functioning system more than ever — one that encourages legal entry and bolsters all workers’ rights.
To do this, the country needs to bring its huge undocumented underclass into the light.
You can learn more about the Trail of DREAMs at their website (you can even chat with the students live most nights at around 8PM EST): trail2010.org
On New Year’s day, a small group of students started a their journey—on foot—from Miami, FL to Washington, DC to raise awareness about the DREAM Act and other progressive immigration reforms. These courageous students, who were brought to the US as children, did not want to see their futures, and those of their classmates, put in jeopardy because they lack a viable path to citizenship.
The students are working with a group called Students Working for Equal Rights (SWER), which is asking for help with this effort (especially if you live in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, or DC). They need people to organize a reception, donate, offer places to stay, etc.
SWER has received an Organizing Grant from Campus Progress as part of the Action Alliance program. The program awards $200-$1,500 to youth-led organizations that are working on progressive issue campaigns or projects that will help build the progressive youth movement.
On Wednesday, Dec. 2nd, Campus Progress, the US Students Association, and US PIRG sponsored an event about the college affordability crisis, student organizing for affordable and accessible universities, and the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act.
Much of the discussion centered around the 32% fee hikes in California, and the student reaction to that decision. Check it out:
The National Governors Association and the National Association of State Budget Officers just released the latest Fiscal Survey of States, and the news is not good. The first paragraph of the report is:
States are currently facing one of the worst, if not
the worst, fiscal periods since the Great Depression.
Fiscal conditions significantly deteriorated for states
during fiscal 2009, with the trend expected to
continue through fiscal 2010 and even into 2011 and
2012.
States are currently facing one of the worst, if not the worst, fiscal periods since the Great Depression. Fiscal conditions significantly deteriorated for states during fiscal 2009, with the trend expected to continue through fiscal 2010 and even into 2011 and 2012.
Ouch. This means that state budget cuts will continue to have a big impact on students. 33 states are cutting higher education budgets in 2009, and this number is only slightly better–30– in 2010. Here is a table of states cutting higher ed budgets that I compiled from information in the report: (more…)
The battle to make college more affordable has come down to a critical few weeks in the Senate. The banks and student loan companies already have spent millions of dollars on lobbying, PR firms, and advertisements in their attempt to stop reform and hang on to wasteful government subsidies. This would mean $87 billion less for programs to make college more affordable and accessible.
Now Campus Progress is taking action. We’ve raised money to put this :30 second spot on cable TV and on Hulu in key states across the country:
We don’t have the kind of money student loan companies have, so we’re going to need your help spreading the ad on Facebook, Twitter, and email if we’re going to get the word out. Click here to help us spread the word.
It’s Graduation season -a time for celebration. Yet many college graduates this year may be celebrating with a few significant concerns hovering in the back of their minds, such as entering a depleting job market (According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers only 20% of 2009 graduates who have applied for jobs have been hired, compared to 51% in 2007), or facing a crushing burden of student loan debt (The average amount of debt a student graduates with is a hefty $20,000, according to the Project on Student Debt), or the final concern of graduating into the new status of being completely uninsured.
Young adults, ages 19-29, account for the largest and fastest-growing segment of the population without health insurance, according to the CommonWealth Fund. Many young people are dropped from their parents’ policies or public programs when they turn 19 or on the very day they graduate, leaving them out in the cold to find coverage and navigate the confusing private health insurance market on their own. Even when hired into the job market, many young adults are entering into low-income, entry-level, or temporary positions where health benefits may not be offered or are very limited. This is not only a health risk, but it puts immediate financial stress on young adults who are just starting out in the workforce. Low-income young adults and young people of color are hit the hardest.
So, on top of the stress of finding a job and working in low-income or temporary positions just to pay off student debt and bills, young graduates are struggling with the fear of not being covered in a health emergency or they are paying outrageous out-of-pocket costs for prescriptions or health care visits. Graduation has literally become hazardous to your health.
Check out this article Out of College, Out of Coverage for stories from graduating students worried about losing their health insurance:
Stefanie Swanson, 21, of Doylestown, who is graduating from Villanova University, recently caught up on her medical checkups in advance of her graduation – and loss of coverage – later this month. “I won’t be covered by the end of May,” she says. “Hopefully, nothing will happen between now and when I get a job.”
Lateefah Holder, 23, a Temple University senior and theater major, knows firsthand the steep cost of living without insurance. She lost coverage under her parents’ plan three years ago after she became a part-time student. When she got the flu last year, she passed out, hit her head, and was hospitalized with a concussion. She’s graduating this month with $5,000 in medical bills, along with $80,000 in college loans.
“At this age, you never think something is going to happen to you,” says Holder, who is from Bloomfield, N.J., “but you’re wrong.”
The increasing loss of coverage among young people just represents the spreading illness that has become our failing health care system. We can’t let this generation fall through the cracks.
Funding our Future is a campaign to pass a progressive federal budget for 2010 and ensure that our nation.s key economic choices invest in our education, spark reform of our health care system, and address climate change through cap and trade and clean energy investments. Click here for more info.
Exchange is 
It’s Graduation season -a time for celebration. Yet many college graduates this year may be celebrating with a few significant concerns hovering in the back of their minds, such as entering a depleting job market (According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers only 20% of 2009 graduates who have applied for jobs have been hired, compared to 51% in 2007), or facing a crushing burden of student loan debt (The average amount of debt a student graduates with is a hefty $20,000, according to the Project on Student Debt), or the final concern of graduating into the new status of being completely uninsured.