by Steve Payne
Monday, Mar. 01, 2004 at 3:03 PM
fsuforce@hotmail.com
A grassroots coalition of student groups has formed in Tallahassee, Florida to combat cuts to higher education and tuition increases. Please visit our website and sign the petition.
In the last decade, tuition in Florida has increased by 60% for undergraduates and 90% for graduate students (four times the rate of inflation). Funding has also been but by almost $200 million. There have been similar cuts and threats of cuts to scholarships on both a federal and national level. In the face of yet another round of tuition increases, a coalition of student groups called F.O.R.C.E. (Fighting for Our Rights Concerning Education) has formed to combat this trend at Florida State University (FSU) in Tallahassee, FL. 24 groups from all walks of life have come together to end discriminatory practices. Both Bushes have shown themselves to be particularly unfriendly to education, and as such, this group will fight to remove both from office. Our demands are:
- No More Tuition Increases
- No More Budget Cuts to Higher Education
- Retain Scholarship Programs
- Create More Need-Based Scholarships
FORCE will fight a grassroots campaign in conjunction with teachers unions to educate themselves, the university, and the world of this problem and work to eradicate it. As such, we will be holding a protest on March 17th on campus, followed by intense lobbying, greater coalition building, and more action.
YOU CAN HELP!!! Please visit our website at www.studentspeakout.com and sign our petition to send a message to the government that you too, are against discriminatory policies.