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Citrus College
Clarion A First Amendment Newspaper
June 3, 2009, Volume LXII, Issue 16 www.theclariononline.com
Budget crisis affects students’ financial future By Emily Rios
AVERAGE COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENT ENROLLMENT/TUITION FEES PER ACADEMIC YEAR
Clarion Co-Editor In Chief
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tudents enrolled in California’s 110 community colleges might soon be paying substantially more per unit if a proposal by the Legislative Analyst Office is adopted by the state legislature. Finding a way to generate revenue has become a major priority as California’s deficit has ballooned to $24 billion, and major cuts in state spending are imminent. Increasing fees at community colleges, as well as the elimination of Cal Grants, are among the proposals under consideration. On May 7, the University of California regents approved a 9.3 percent increase in student fees on its 10 campuses. UCs are facing a shortfall of $437 million over the next two years; the fee hike is expected to offset the deficit by $100 million. “The fee increase will definitely mean that I will have to work more and take out more loans,” said student Joshua Gaglia who will be attending UC Berkeley in the fall. “It does not deter me in anyway because if I have to be in debt I’d rather it be because I am pursuing an education.” The CSU fee hike is expected to generate $127 million for the 23-campus system, with onethird of revenues to be set aside for financial aid. “Most students, like myself, cannot afford the fee as it stands now,” said Citrus student Mark Nevarez. Transferring to Cal State LA this summer, Nevarez said the fee increase would only make a difficult situation worse. The California Community College system is facing a major shortfall, with Citrus facing a $3.6 million reduction to the general fund. To help remedy this problem, the Legislative Analyst’s Office has proposed raising the per-unit fee for the state’s community colleges from $20 a unit to $60 a unit. If a student were at full-time status taking 12 units, they would pay $720 instead of the current $240. The LAO argues that students
See FEES/page 3
Life Pg. 5 cmyk
$5000+
$3500 - $3000
$2500 - $2000
$1500 - $1000
$4000+
$3000 - $2500
$2000 - $1500
$718
(DATA BASED ON 2005-06 SCHOOL YEAR. COMPILED FROM THE BOOK OF THE STATES, 2008 EDITION.) Dustin Call Citrus College Clarion The 2008 edition of The Book of the States shows that in the 2005-2006 academic year, California was far below every other state in the country on how much students pay to enroll in community college each year.
New student government elected By Rebecca Vicino Clarion Staff Writer
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tudents voted to elect six new Associated Students of Citrus College representatives on May 27 and 28. Karlyn Bradley, who ran unopposed for student body president, received 156 votes. Other winning candidates include Oscar Fernandez, who received 178 votes and was elected as vice president; Michael Kruggel, who received 108 votes and was elected as legislative liaison; and Barbara Truong, who received 139 votes was elected as a senator. ASCC goes through the election process twice a year: once in early December, and again at the end of spring. This May, 219 Citrus students took part in the election process.
Sports Pg. 12
The ASCC Constitution states, “A candidate for elective office, other than senator, who receives 50 percent plus one of the votes cast for that office will be declared the winner, providing that he or she has received at least 50 votes.” Bradley expressed confidence in his new role and said that he looks forward to his time in office. “I wanted to be at the forefront, and I wanted to lead people… I felt like I had grown enough as a leader to do so,” Bradley said. After serving on the Springfest committee in 2008, Bradley was appointed as ASCC commissioner of activities and then moved on to become ASCC treasurer. Bradley, 20, a resident of Pomona, is majoring in psychology. He plans to one day become a psychologist to teenagers, who he feels are “the most impressionable group.” “One of the things that I want
ASCC logo to look into is a textbook rental program and implementing a student fee, which would be a $1 donation that students can choose to make when they’re registering. That money could be used for ASCC to rally or send representatives to Sacramento,” Bradley said. Newly elected senator Tamara Dubuni called Bradley a hardworking person whom she looks forward to working with. Dubuni, who received 113 votes, described her position as “the voice of the students and the faculty at school.” “I’m willing to do all I can to
help the students,” Dubuni said. She hopes to bring awareness to the students about different student activities and encourage them to be more involved at Citrus College. Dubuni, 19, is a computer science major and plans to transfer to Cal Poly after she has completed her requirements at Citrus. Adrienne Thompson, supervisor of student life and activities, stressed the importance of ASCC and believes that their work benefits other Citrus students.
See ASCC/page 3
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