Commentary

In the last four years, schools and colleges in California have suffered more than $20 billion in cuts, according to the California Teachers Association, and with more proposed cuts, students are struggling to pay tuition or receive adequate education.

Now California faces a mid-year budget cut of $100 million, according to ABC News.

Although many schools have already faced losing faculty members and cutting classes, students will be experiencing a $10 per unit increase beginning in May, paying $46 a unit, to make up for the lost revenue, according the same ABC News article.

With fewer classes offered, it makes graduating and transferring more difficult and less likely for many California students. We are paying more money for fewer classes and less resources.

Santa Monica College is currently creating a plan to offer popular classes, such as English or math, to students who need to transfer at a cost of about $200 per unit when the state-funded classes are full, L.A. Times said.

This may seem great—for students who can afford it. While these students buy their way into classes in order to meet transfer deadlines, other students may be doomed to a 4- or 5-year plan at community colleges.

And even with the possibility of transferring, the future looks bleak. State schools are also suffering due to budget cuts.

California does spend a significant portion of its budget on education, with 28.6 percent of our budget going towards K-12 education, and 7.1 percent to higher education, according to the Governor’s Proposed Budget page.

Furthermore, our national budget for education has increased 6.9 percent from 2010 to 2011, Claudio Sanchez, education correspondent of NPR, said. $49 billion has been allotted to Pell Grants, which help low-income students afford higher education, he added.

So where is our money going?

While students protested tuition hikes last year, UC Regents held a meeting “where they voted to raise the salaries of nearly a dozen university administrators and lawyers by as much as 21.9 percent”, according to baycitizen.org.

This kind of corruption should not be allowed to go on. Students face massive tuition increases, while administrators take pay raises. We are going through a recession, and public education is hurting.

If we could put things in perspective and be less greedy, there could be a light at the end of the tunnel.