UPDATE: Nov. 20, 2014 at 6:33 p.m.
The University of California Board of Regents voted 14 to 7 Thursday to adopt a resolution allowing for up to a 5 percent spike in tuition for each of the next five school years, unless the state gives the system more money.
During the vote, UC students tried to block the vote by drowning out the roll call with chants.
Original Story:
A University of California Board of Regents committee voted Wednesday in San Francisco to approve a plan for giving the system the power to raise tuition by as much as 5 percent over the next five years, should the governor and state legislature not come through with funding at levels the regents see as appropriate.
UC Santa Barbara Associated Students President Ali Guthy said Wednesday evening that an objection petition has begun circulating on campus in reaction to the vote. Student rallies also took place throughout the day on the UCSB campus, in San Francisco, and at campus locations throughout the system.
"Our undergraduate student body is obviously extremely disappointed with the results of today's meeting," Guthy said. "The state has continuously disinvested from higher education and there's a sentiment that the burden to pay for higher education is being continuously placed on students."
Guthy says the UC system was founded on the principle of shared government, with students playing a part in that process, but are currently being left out of decisions and weren't notified in advance of this most recent issue involving the possible tuition increases.
University of California representative Dianne Kline said Wednesday that typically the UC waits for the state to pass it's budget and accepts what is allocated for the system at that point. She argued that the move today was necessary to gain control over the situation.
"What we're saying today by presenting this plan is, 'that's crazy,'" Kline said in reference to the state's method for funding the system. "We need a long-range plan for stability that allows families and students and the university to plan."
Kline stressed that the committee vote was for a contingency plan and it did not amount to a tuition increase.
The full Board of Regents are scheduled to vote on the proposal during its meeting on Thursday, and it is expected to pass.
