Months of hard work by CFA activists and students is paying off again this week as the Senate and the Assembly agreed to increase CSU funding and reopen the doors to thousands of Californians who were eligible but denied access to the People’s University.
A student at Cal State Long Beach struggled with depression and anxiety due to parents divorcing, and gave up finding a counselor on campus because it took too long.
At the State Capitol this morning, CFA leaders joined Assembly Higher Education Committee Chair Jose Medina, CSU and UC students, and state Assemblymembers and Senators at a news conference to sound a defiant challenge to Governor Brown’s minimal funding plan for public higher education.
While millions of California’s vote-by-mail voters are now returning their ballots in California’s June 5 Primary, there is still time for others to register to votehttps://registertovote.ca.gov/—the deadline is next Monday, May 21.
CFA President Jennifer Eagan and CFA Secretary Kevin Wehr called on the CSU Trustees at their meeting yesterday to support two bills—SB 986 for more CSU mental health counselors, and AB 2505, for greater transparency by CSU administrators in spending tax dollars.
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Vote-By-Mail ballots are already arriving at voters’ homes, meaning the June 5 California Primary is already underway. Join with our colleagues to campaign for public higher education.
CSU students are celebrating the news, issued last Friday, that CSU Chancellor Timothy White will not pursue a student tuition increase for the 2018-19 Academic Year starting July 1.
To all our CFA colleagues who have been working hard on political action efforts to help Labor-friendly candidates succeed during the primary election on June 5, THANK YOU!
Faculty from Humboldt to San Diego have been volunteering to help our endorsed candidates succeed. They’ve walked precincts, sent texts, and phoned voters by the thousands, and we appreciate their efforts.
LISTEN UP: Looking for a podcast to listen to while traveling or even just relaxing this summer? Check out “Radio Free CSU,” CFA’s podcast. Our inaugural series examines our union’s commitment to Anti-Racism and Social Justice Transformation work, and in each episode, host Audrena Redmond talks with a CFA leader about one of the guiding principles of that work.
Here are links to episodes available:
Episode 1: Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere
Episode 2: We intentionally center Anti-Racism as part of our mission
Episode 3: We acknowledge that even we in CFA are part of the problem of racism
Episode 4: We acknowledge that WE can be part of the solution by being intentionally committed to addressing it (racism).
California Senate Budget & Fiscal Review Subcommittee 1 on Education approved a budget proposal this morning that, if adopted, would add $317.6 million to the CSU’s general state funding in the fiscal year that starts July 1.
“The persistent advocacy for many months by CFA members, CSU students and our supporters, is paying off for the California State University, witnessed by this funding proposal,” said CFA President Jennifer Eagan on hearing the news. “This is one victory on the road to reinvestment in our public university, and we must keep up the pressure.”
BARGAINING CONTINUES ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND ACADEMIC FREEDOM: CFA’s Bargaining Team met again with management to continue discussions about Intellectual Property and Academic Freedom. As part of the agreement to extend the contract last year, CFA and CSU management had agreed to discuss these issues prior to bargaining the next faculty contract in Fall 2019.
Sacramento— Despite record tax receipts that are billions of dollars above projection and what is required for the state’s Rainy Day Fund, Gov. Jerry Brown’s May Revise of the proposed state budget for 2018-19 fails to include more funding for the California State University, which in turn fails students, faculty and staff, and the future of California.
The May Revise calls for increasing the CSU budget’s general fund by just $92.1 million, which does not include enough funding to increase enrollment in the CSU, nor adequately support the CSU this fiscal year.
