Rutgers head praised students for rallying, but told them they were 'unrealistic'
NEW BRUNSWICK — Chanting "Education is a right — fight, fight, fight!," hundreds of Rutgers University students marched on the campus administration building in New Brunswick today to protest tuition hikes and state funding cuts to higher education.
The noisy students filled the halls and stairwell of Old Queens, the historic building that houses the state university’s top officials, until Rutgers President Richard McCormick came outside to speak to them.
Using a bullhorn, the president praised the students for rallying to protest higher education cuts. But he was booed when he told them their chants of "Freeze our tuition!" were unrealistic.
"I know you want me to say that there will not be a tuition increase next year," McCormick said. "I can’t say that."
At a Legislative budget hearing in Trenton earlier this week, McCormick testified tuition hikes at the state’s public colleges will likely be less than 10 percent, though no final decisions will be made until June or July at most schools.
The Rutgers protest — which began with speeches on Voorhees Mall and ended with a march down College Avenue that stopped traffic — was one of at least nine student-organized "Day of Action" events on public college campuses across the state. The effort was coordinated by New Jersey United Students, a newly formed statewide group that wants students to have more of a say in higher education issues.
At William Paterson University in Wayne, about 100 people attended a "Day of Alternative Education," where students, labor unions and community groups discussed college affordability issues, organizers said. At the College of New Jersey in Ewing, students hosted a "Tell it like it is" day where students told their own stories about affording college and signed letters to lawmakers.
Other "Day of Action" events were also held at Montclair State, Rutgers-Newark, New Jersey Institute of Technology, New Jersey City University, Rowan University and Ramapo College. Students in California held a similar series of rallies on 23 campuses today and students in other states are scheduled to hold protest events later this week.
"It shows we are not going to take the cuts to education lying down," said John Aspray, 21, a Rutgers senior who helped found New Jersey United Students. "It’s a good start. We need to demonstrate our power as a coalition."
In New Jersey, state funding for public colleges has been slashed in recent years as tuition has risen steadily. This year, Gov. Chris Christie’s budget proposal calls for $714 million in state aid for the colleges, about the same as last year.
Unlike last year, when tuition hikes at public four-year colleges were capped at 4 percent by the state Legislature, the colleges are expected to have the freedom to decide their own tuition increases this year.
The average Rutgers undergraduate now pays $12,559 in annual tuition and fees before room and board and other costs are added. At the other public four-year colleges, annual tuition and fees range from $9,347 at New Jersey City University to $13,549 at the College of New Jersey.
At the Rutgers rally, students carried signs reading "Take back our economy," "Keep RU public" and "I am not an ATM." In addition to calling for more state money for education, the students said they want a vote on the Rutgers Board of Governors. The board, which sets tuition and oversees the university, has one non-voting student member.
"Students deserve more of a voice in how their educations are funded, said Nicole Buffington," a Rutgers senior political science major from Virginia.
"This is a common theme, not just in New Jersey, but across the U.S.," said Buffington, 23. "It shows that students are not apathetic. We want higher education to be a priority."