At no time in the history of the University of California has the prospect of funding the system fallen so heavily on the backs of students and families.
With a $150 million cut to the UC in the newly approved state budget, the UC Board of Regents will vote Thursday on a 9.6 percent increase in tuition.
If approved, the increase would come on top of an 8 percent hike approved last November, the unprecedented moment when student tuition surpassed the general fund investment from the state.
Gov. Jerry Brown’s tax extension proposal that died amid partisan politics was, for months, acknowledged as a way to prevent the cut to UC from increasing. The fact that the measure never had a chance to stand before voters is deeply regrettable. Even more regrettable was the UC leadership’s reticence to aggressively negotiate with lawmakers to produce something both ballot-ready and in line with the long-term financial health of the university system.
Private philanthropy has often been identified as a means of boosting revenue for the university. A tax package is the greatest philanthropy that the UC can ask for at this time ““ asking voters to support both the structure and idea of public higher education in California.
It is clear that, for decades, the system has persisted without significant structural changes. Tuition increases have served as a Band-Aid on the wound.
Fixed annual tuition increases at lower rates would, for now, give middle-income students a chance to prepare a payment plan. But that sidesteps the most troubling part of the equation. Students who entered the UC as first-years in 2008 will enter their fourth year paying about $5,000 more toward their education in 2011.
On this issue, our undergraduate student government has been strangely silent. UCLA is one of nine undergraduate campuses faced with tuition increases. USAC should aggressively mobilize students, suspend its internal focus and work closely with its fellow UC student governments.
UC President Mark Yudof repeatedly states his commitment to retain quality, even if it comes at the expense of accessibility and affordability. The latter two pillars, however, are a crucial element in what makes this public education system valuable and, fundamentally, public.
Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the editorial board.