Howard Zinn R.I.P.

"TO BE HOPEFUL in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness.

What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places—and there are so many—where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.

And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory."

-Howard Zinn

CFA White paper on Restructuring the CSU

The California Faculty Association has released a white paper and blog outlining the drastic plans CSU's administration has for radically restructuring the system. 

Check it out here: http://restructuringcsu.wordpress.com/

Noam Chomsky on California's Public Higher Education

I had a startling experience a few weeks ago. I travelled to Mexico City for talks at the National University, an enormous and very impressive institution with high standards of achievement and scholarship. Entrance is selective, but the university is virtually free. I then visited an even more remarkable institution, the college in Mexico City established by former mayor Lopez Obrador. Again, the facilities and standards are quite impressive. It is not only free, but has open admissions, though sometimes that requires some delay and sometimes assistance for students lacking adequate preparation. Shortly after I went to San Francisco for talks, and learned more about the California institutions of higher education. They have been at the very peak of the international higher education system. By now tuitions are quite high, even for in-state students, and cutbacks are affecting teaching, research, and staff. It would be no great surprise if the two major state universities, UC Berkeley and UC Los Angeles, will soon be privatized while the remainder of the state system is reduced considerably in scale and level. Needless to say, Mexico is a poor country with a struggling economy, and California should be one of the richest places in the world, with incomparable advantages. I mention these recent experiences only to emphasize that the recent cut-backs in higher education seen in much of the world cannot simply be traced to economic problems. Rather, they reflect fundamental choices about the nature of the society in which we will live. If it is to be designed for the wealthy and privileged, mostly engaged in management and finance while production is transferred abroad and most of the population is left to fend somehow for themselves at the fringes of decent and creative life, then these are good choices. If we have different aspirations for the world of our children and grandchildren, the choices are shameful and ruinous.

 From here.

Funeral for the Master Plan for Higher Ed

Over 100 students & faculty held a mock funeral for the CA Master Plan for Higher Education outside of the Wednesday CSU Board of Trustees meeting, complete with a hearse and even a bagpiper leading the procession.  The CSULB campus paper has the full story here.

Here's some photos below:

"WTF? Where's the Funding?" SJSU Rally - Round 2

A couple weeks ago, Students for Quality Education had announced at their rally that they would be back on Sept 22, the first day of furloughs for San Jose State, with an even bigger rally.  They delivered; with over 500 students and a number of faculty turning out, this has ended up being one of the largest student rallies held on the campus since the 70's.  What's even more impressive is the fact that this turnout happened on a day when there are no classes and thus no reason to be on campus!

Dubbed "WTF? Where's the Funding?" students rallied in the Campus Village Quad, where speakers included Sally Lieber (former Assembly Speaker Pro Tem), a member of ASI, a representative from Student Advocates for Higher Education (SAHE) and Jonathan Karpf, (Professor of Anthropology, Associate VP CFA) all addressed the crowd.  The most interesting moment was when one of the speakers asked the crowd how many of them wish they were in their class today, which was responded to with raised hands from almost everyone there.

Students then proceeded to march through campus, then through downtown, as they headed to the state building where a number of state legislators offices were located.

Through downtown:

At the state office:

San Jose actually contains a number of really strong supporters of higher ed, including Joe Coto and Jim Beall, to name a few, so students there announced their support for their work the assembly members were doing, chanted "Fund Higher Education!" and proceeded to march back to the front of the campus' President's Office, where students gave testimonials of the hardships they endured to get their education:

More coverage here.