Press Releases:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, November 11, 2010
Contact: Kelsey McQuaid, CCD Communications Director, 949.338.4194
The California College Democrats Denounce Proposed Fee Increases at UCs and CSUs
Increases will Place More Hardships on Students
Sacramento, CA- Just weeks after celebrating an increase in funding to the UC and CSU in the state budget, students have been hit with the harsh reality that even increases in funding will not stop fee increases. UC President Mark Yudof has announced that the regents will consider an 8% fee increase for the 2011-2012 school year while the CSU Board of Trustees has approved a 15.5% increase for the Spring Semester and a 10% increase for 2011-2012. Following the 32% fee increases at the UC and __ % increase at CSUs, students are quickly seeing their dreams of a college education disappear.
Far too many students were forced to drop out or enroll part time due to the past fee increases and the proposed increase furthers the trend of placing the burden of funding public higher education on the students. An 8% fee increase will force students to find an additional $856 a year. While this may not seem like much to some Californians and the wealthy UC executives, for college students $856 is the equivalent of more than a month’s rent, food, transportation, and the ability to go through life without fearing eviction and unenrollment.
“Loans and financial aid no longer cover as much as they once did and it leaves students scrambling to come up with money that they don’t have. The failure to fund public higher education has created a generation of Californians that are either forced out of the education system or driven into debt. The UC Regents and CSU Board of Trustees must find a sustainable solution to funding higher education that doesn’t harm students,” said Ian Magruder, President of the California College Democrats (CCD).
Fee increases were once the last resort to balance the UC and CSU funding, but it has now become the first option. This trend of raise fees first has continued despite the increase in state funding from the 2010 state budget.
Although we commend the Regents for proposing an increase in financial aid along with this fee hike, any form of fee increases hurts students. After the 32% fee increases more financial aid was made available to students, but it came nowhere near matching the costs. While the Regents may be making an effort to offset the effects, they are still relying on the students to pay the brunt of the cost. Unfortunately, the fee increases will hit undocumented students the hardest because they are not eligible for financial aid regardless of their family’s income level. This cycle of taxing students is not sustainable and affects students disproportionately depending on their parents’ income.
“It is despicable that the Regents are including fee hikes and increases to executive pay in the same budget proposal. When students such as myself have to worry about where they’ll get the money for rent and books the last thing that should be considered are more fee increases and raises to executives. The students need to see some relief, not the executives; we are being taxed out of a college education,” stated Kelsey McQuaid, CCD Communications Director.
CCD is calling on the Regents and the CSU Board of Trustees to stop balancing the budget by increasing tuition; they should be looking to other alternatives such as state funding and cutting excesses in executive pay.
In a time when California needs to do all it can to turn our economy around, making a college education unattainable will only further our economic downturn. The ideas and skills of California’s college students are the key to revitalizing the economy, but theses students will never be able to make their impact unless fee increases stop and college becomes more affordable.
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The California Young Democrats (CYD) is the official youth arm of the California Democratic Party, comprised of progressive people ages 14-35. The California Young Democrats are committed to creating a bloc of young voters who will elect Democrats for an entire generation. Using proven peer to Peer campaign methods, Young Democrats have made significant differences in races all over California. Young Democrats in California work everyday to promote social justice, women’s rights, peace and stability in the world, and many other progressive values.
The California College Democrats (CCD) is the official student outreach arm of the Democratic Party.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, October 1, 2010
Contact: Kelsey McQuaid, CCD Communications Director, 949.338.4194
Social Media Counters Millions of Dollars on “Don’t Get Meg’d”
Website Run by College Students Utilizes Social Media to Get Out the Facts
Berkeley, CA- In an election that has seen a single candidate give $119 million to her own campaign, a group of Berkeley students are using social media to get their message across. The students aim to educate young voters about why Republican Meg Whitman is the wrong choice for California.
The “Don’t Get Meg’d” project has many facets to reach young voters including a website, Facebook page, and Youtube channel. Through these forms of free media, they’re giving young voters near-daily reminders about regressive positions on the economy, education, the environment, marriage equality, and other issues close to young people.
Witty humor and an emphasis on the comical flaws in Whitman’s policy have increased the following for this group to the thousands. Young voters who were excited in 2008 are flocking to this site and getting energized and excited to vote in the 2010 elections.
“We are excited that so many fellow young voters follow this site. We’re just a small group of Cal Berkely Democrats trying to battle the millions of Whitman and it feels great to know that we’ve made an impact with very little funding,” said Nik Dixit, CCD Political Director and founder of “Don’t Get Meg’d”.
The group is evidence that grass roots organizing and social media can energize young voter who usually tune out the midterm elections. As the followers of “Don’t Get Meg’d” increase in number, the more evident it becomes that a clear message and the truth mean more to young voters than how many millions you throw at them in TV ads.
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The California Young Democrats (CYD) is the official youth arm of the California Democratic Party, comprised of progressive people ages 14-35. The California Young Democrats are committed to creating a bloc of young voters who will elect Democrats for an entire generation. Using proven peer to Peer campaign methods, Young Democrats have made significant differences in races all over California. Young Democrats in California work everyday to promote social justice, women’s rights, peace and stability in the world, and many other progressive values.
The California College Democrats (CCD) is the official higher education student outreach arm of the Democratic Party.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, August 23, 2010
Contact: Nik Dixit, CCD Political Director, 650-281-6022 or Kelsey McQuaid, CCD Communications Director, 949-338-4194
California College Democrats Launch Their “Rush to Reg” Program
Incentives Given to Register the Most Voters on Campus
Sacramento – In this election year, when a few hundred votes have the potential to swing a race, the California College Democrats (CCD) are working to get young voters out to the polls. In an effort to increase awareness, CCD is launching a statewide effort to register college students.
Due to the success of the “Rush to Reg” program in 2009, CCD has decided to continue the program for the 2010 election. College chapters throughout California compete against each other to see who can register the most voters on their campus. There are two categories that the chapters can enter into, small or large campus, depending on the school’s population. The top two in each category will be given a prize.
CCD is excited to see what its chapters will do this year to top the numbers achieved by last year’s participants. Last year CCD chapters registered approximately 4,500 young voters, 2,200 of which were Democrats.
“Seeing what we were capable of in a non-election year makes me excited for what we can achieve this year. Each young voter we register puts us one step closer to dispelling the rumor of youth apathy and electing candidates that will fight for issues that affect college students,” said CCD Political Director Nik Dixit.
The “Rush to Reg” program is a valuable recruiting and GOTV tool for college chapters as it allows them to bring new people into the system who will become reliable voters through peer to peer organizing and membership in College Democrats chapters on their campuses.
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The California Young Democrats (CYD) is the official youth arm of the California Democratic Party, comprised of progressive people ages 14-35. The California Young Democrats are committed to creating a bloc of young voters who will elect Democrats for an entire generation. Using proven peer to Peer campaign methods, Young Democrats have made significant differences in races all over California. Young Democrats in California work everyday to promote social justice, women’s rights, peace and stability in the world, and many other progressive values.
The California College Democrats (CCD) is the official student outreach arm of the Democratic Party.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, August 20, 2010
Contact: Ian Magruder, CCD President, 831-421-1808 or Kelsey McQuaid, CCD Communications Director, 949-338-4194
California College Democrats Interview Mayor Gavin Newsom
The Candidate for Lieutenant Governor Discusses Jobs, Education, and the State Budget.
San Francisco – Taking a step away from running the city of San Francisco and being on the campaign trail, Mayor Gavin Newsom sat down with the California College Democrats (CCD) to discuss the most pressing issues facing California.
Gavin Newsom is in his seventh year serving as mayor of San Francisco and previously served three terms as county supervisor in Marina. The mayor, who got his start in politics as a 26 year old parking and traffic chair under Willie Brown, is now in a battle with Republican Abel Maldonado to become the next Lieutenant Governor of California.
While in the Assembly, Abel Maldonado was part of the budget deal that resulted in record cuts to education and devastating fee increases for higher education. Drawing a stark contrast with Maldonado, Newsom emphasized during the interview that “[his] opponent supported these budgets that forced California Community Colleges, the California State University, and the University of California to make these horrible choices.”
Throughout his interview with CCD, Mayor Newsom proved that his plan will revitalize California and make it a global competitor and example for the nation once again.
When asked about how to revitalize the economy Mayor Newsom focused on green technology as the key to turning California’s economy around. Green tech has shown real growth and by focusing on this sector “we can address global climate change and the global macroeconomic turndown,” stated Mayor Newsom. He speculated that if done under the right leadership and with the right intent, focus on the green sector could result in a boom that last for 50 to 100 years.
Another important aspect of restoring California’s economy to the prestige it once held is focusing on higher education. Newsom stated argued that fee increases force students out of college due to insufficient funds and puts them into the same job pool with parents, friends, and neighbors who were laid off. Unlike his opponent, Newsom has vowed to “find efficiencies [and] savings, so we don’t have to face these fee increases”.
During his interview with CCD, Mayor Newsom also vowed to support a Constitutional Convention to overturn the 2/3rds Rule, realignment of state and county funding, a two year budget, a larger rainy day fund, and a pay as you go system.
Ready to change California, Mayor Newsom encouraged members of the College Democrats to” get out there [and] get involved” with his campaign by visiting gavinnewsom.com.
With California’s economy in decline and education system in peril, Mayor Gavin Newsom is the right choice to get California back on track. The California College Democrats support the mayor because he has the ideas and the inspiration to solve the problems facing Californians.
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The California Young Democrats (CYD) is the official youth arm of the California Democratic Party, comprised of progressive people ages 14-35. The California Young Democrats are committed to creating a bloc of young voters who will elect Democrats for an entire generation. Using proven peer to Peer campaign methods, Young Democrats have made significant differences in races all over California. Young Democrats in California work everyday to promote social justice, women’s rights, peace and stability in the world, and many other progressive values.
The California College Democrats (CCD) is the official student outreach arm of the Democratic Party.
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