The State of Higher Ed, from the Student Perspective

The last couple of weeks have been very intense. On Feb. 23, President Wise sent a letter to legislative leadership outlining what budget cuts would look like at UW. In this letter, the Evans School of Public Affairs and the Information School were named as facing potential consolidation with another school. The Public Health Genetics program is facing elimination.

As you can imagine, there are many very extremely concerned students who are trying to figure out what this all means. GPSS has been working to get students information and to bring them together.

Meanwhile, this morning I testified before the House Higher Education Committee on behalf of the Washington Student Association. It was a very candid and heartfelt testimony, with the intention of encouraging legislators to put themselves in the (hole-ridden) shoes of students.

Here is the Seattle Times' coverage of this hearing:
University presidents warn lawmakers about higher-ed budget cuts

View my testimony here:



Click here for video of full committee hearing.

With the Legislature starting to shift its focus to the biennial budget, there is much left to be decided. We will continue to work hard to ensure that graduate students interests are heard.

Here are some media links on the President's letter, her town hall meeting yesterday, and the Evans School reaction.

President Wise letter:
The Daily: Wise sends letter to Legislature warning about costs of cuts
Seattle Times: State university presidents paint grim picture on budget cuts

President Wise town hall:
UWTV video: President’s Town Hall – State of the UW Budget
The Daily: Wise addresses budget at yesterday’s town-hall meeting

Evans School consolidation:
The Daily: Students organize to prevent consolidation of Evans School
Seattle Times: UW cuts may hit Evans School of Public Affairs
"Evans School Stories" video

The Bill Is Dead. But the Idea Is Still Very Much Alive.

So SB 5795, which enables student-parents to earn their degrees through reinstating the Childcare Matching Grant program, died today when it failed to get a floor vote by the 5 p.m. deadline.

Senator Brown, the bill's prime sponsor and a champion of students and childcare issues, has vowed to pursue making this a part of the big omnibus budget bill. The bill may be dead, but the idea lives on.

The bill had made it out of the Senate Ways & Means and Rules committees. It was eligible for a floor vote as of yesterday morning. But because the cut-off for bills to leave their chamber of origin was at 5, and because it didn't get a vote until then, the bill in effect died at 5 p.m.

It was quite the interesting day. We learned that the bill had opposition, so there wasn't going to be a floor vote. There was one especially influential member of the opposition, so we mobilized to influence him. And it actually worked.

At first he very much opposed it, making arguments against it. He was saying we should fully fund State Need Grant before funding a "new program." We eventually explained that is wasn't a "new program" but this bill restores funding to a suspended program. We also explained that this is financial aid and a way to help students during a session that is very unfriendly to students.

By the time we spoke to him the third time, he finally said, "I'm not against it, talk to Democratic leadership. Look how I voted in committee!" (He voted for it in Senate Ways & Means.)

So we finally got him and I ran to write Senator Brown a note. However, by then it was too late. It was 4 p.m., and the deadline to hear bills was 5 p.m., and there were still a million bills ahead of this one. I think if we had another day we could have gotten it.

But I will say I am proud that we can say we got this bill out of TWO committees and a breath away from a floor vote. We got this bill moving pretty late in the process. And thanks to Senator Brown's support, we at least got the conversation moving on this issue.

There is still a lot more work to be done, and I will be calling upon students to make your voices heard when the timing is right.


UPDATE: The Daily's coverage: http://dailyuw.com/2011/3/9/child-care-funding-bill-stopped-state-senate/

Childcare Bill Passes Senate Ways & Means

We got the votes! 19-2! SB 5795 is now in Rules, and we'll be working to get it pulled for a floor vote.

Here's a good account of the bill and where it's at:
http://dailyuw.com/2011/3/1/child-care-bill-would-provide-more-aid-student-par/

Do We Have the Votes?

Looks like I just might have the votes to get this bill (SB 5795) out of committee. Gonna stay late and try to get a couple more, just in case. In the meantime, a beautiful look at the snowy dome.

GPSS to Senate: Childcare Bill Is Sound Fiscal Policy

So we made our case to Senate Ways & Means yesterday afternoon. I testified, along with Shiboney Dumo, UW's Student Parent Organization President.

The last day this bill can be voted out of committee is tomorrow (Friday, Feb. 25). I will be working hard to get the votes. I'll provide an update on whether this bill gets exec'd out.

Also, we need students to help, and time is of the essence! Here's how to help:
http://www.gpss.washington.edu/content/child-care-bill-needs-your-help

And here's what happened at the hearing:

GPSS testimony:


Testimony of Shiboney Dumo, UW's Student Parent Organization President:


Entire hearing on SB 5795:

These are our arguments:

No Impact to General Fund: Senate Bill 5795 creates a funding mechanism for an existing program that will enable student-parents to get their degrees. The funding source is the portion of unclaimed lottery winnings that goes to funding more lottery prizes. This bill does not impact the general fund, and Washington State Lottery has said the impact to them is “minimal.”

The question is simple: Would you rather pay for more lottery prizes, or enhancing educational outcomes for non-traditional students?

Produces Degrees: With much talk this session about funding on outcomes and not inputs (focusing on degree production rather than enrollment), SB 5795 will address Washington’s shortage in degree production and mitigate the third greatest barrier to degree completion, childcare.

Here is the perspective of UW graduate student Jessica Burg:

“I often feel as if I am failing in both my role as a student as more importantly failing in my role as a mother. These feelings are cemented when advisors ask me how I feel about ‘underperforming in grad school.’ These feelings are cemented when I have to choose between going to class and nursing my sick infant. These feelings are cemented when I struggle to find the time to write my degree project when my son is buzzing around me in all his two-year-old fury. The past two years have been a constant struggle, a constant feeling of failure, and the recurring relief of finding out I have just barely passed quantitative analysis or some other class.”

Moves Focus Away From Social Services: If you are a low-income parent with no degree, you have some choices. You can turn to social services. Or, you can pursue a degree, start a career, and enter the workforce. Give someone a fish, they eat for a day; teach them to fish, and they eat for a lifetime. SB 5795 incentivizes the path to self sufficiency.

Eligibility to All Public Schools: Everyone on this committee has at least one community college in your district. Some of you have four or five. We are proposing an amendment that would open up eligibility for these grants to community and technical colleges. This would make all public colleges and universities in this state eligible.

A Way to Support Students in Tough Fiscal Times: In a session where students are taking on a disproportionally greater burden in budget cuts that degrade quality and increase tuition, this would be a small way to give something to students, who are even seeing financial aid get cut. This is something that students are asking for, and that students have prioritized. Do not allow yet another financial aid program to be suspended.

5795 is sound policy that is basically cost-neutral, with a dedicated funding source, that will have a significant impact on student-parents. The Washington Student Association requests moving 5795 out of committee with a due-pass recommendation.

Childcare Bill Hearing Takes Place Wednesday, 2/23

So the good news is SB 5795 has been scheduled for a hearing at Senate Ways & Means. The bad news is this agenda is JAMMED PACKED with hearings on 25 bills. Yikes.

Because of the time constraints, we won't be able to give it as much of a treatment as we could have. But we will still do everything we can to make our best case.

The hearing is coming up very quickly. It'll be Wednesday at 1:30. We're 12th on the agenda, so we'll probably end up somewhere in the second half of the hearing.

I will be working hard to lobby members and get the votes. I will need everyone's help in spreading the word. Below is an email we've been sending out to campus student-parent stakeholders.

Let's do this!!!

Ben

Dear Student-Parent,

Sen. Lisa Brown will be sponsoring a GPSS-requested bill SB 5795 Higher Education Child Care Grants, that proposes to reinstate and increase funding for the Child Care Matching Grant Program.

The bill has been giving a public hearing in the Senate on Wednesday, Feb. 23. We need you to show up to Olympia and show that student-parents are DEMANDING this. If you cannot make it, please write a letter supporting this bill.

We are looking for student-parents to volunteer to:

• Share their stories and experience as a student-parent, and how being a parents makes it difficult for you to attain your degrees
• Testify in support of this bill
• Recruit other student-parents to participate
• If you are interested, please contact Lauren Hipp at gpsspol@uw.edu by Tuesday, Feb. 22. If you are writing a letter, please email it to that address.

Thank you so much for all of your support during this process!  With your help, we can restore the essential state support for student-parents.

More details about the bill: http://gpss2011.blogspot.com/2011/02/gpss-backed-bill-helps-student-parents.html

Sincerely,

Ben Henry
Vice President
UW Graduate & Professional Student Senate

Obama's Budget Would Add to Graduate Debt Burden

President Obama's budget proposal would charge graduate students interest on loans once they start school, as opposed to after we graduate, as is currently the case.

Disincentivizing the pursuit of advanced degrees puts America at a further disadvantage in the global marketplace.

GPSS will be going to Washington, D.C., late March to lobby against this. Please email me at gpssvp@uw.edu if you are interested in writing a letter to protest this proposal.

News coverage:
Huffington Post: Graduate Students May Face Higher Debt Under Obama's Budget Plan
AP: Obama to Seek Changes in Pell Grants