With budget cuts plaguing higher education throughout Ohio, many student governments are beginning to fight back, including Ohio State's Undergraduate Student Government.
USG, which is part of the Ohio Council of Student Governments, is collecting postcards to express student dissatisfaction with the state's lack of support for higher education funding. USG will be collecting student signatures until tomorrow morning, when representatives from OCSG will deliver the postcards to Gov. Bob Taft's office and meet with lawmakers to discuss higher education funding.
Representatives from OSU will be joined by all the other public universities in Ohio, including Bowling Green, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Akron, Cleveland State, Kent State, Ohio University, Shawnee State, University of Toledo, Wright State and Youngstown State.
The president of each student government, as well as a few senators from each university, will attend tomorrow's rally at the Statehouse, said Josh Beasley, USG director of legislative affairs.
"We are ultimately trying to make higher education a priority in Ohio," Beasley said. "Gov. Taft has said that he wants to move Ohio towards the 'knowledge' economy, yet that isn't going to happen if these budget cuts persist."
Although Taft will not be in town for the rally, OCSG members will meet with the Chair and Vice Chair of the State Education Committee, among others.
Fifty-four percent of the budget cuts made by the state last fall were directed toward higher education, which ranks Ohio 42nd in the nation for receiving state funds for higher education, said Jon Mueller, a USG member on the legislative affairs committee.
Mueller said now the legislature wants to reinstate the tuition cap, but after the cuts have already been made, which could lead to the laying off of people or further tuition increases.
"We'd like to get some legislative support for higher education by doing this," Mueller said.
USG members have tried to drum up student support for the campaign this week, by distributing fliers and collecting signatures on the Oval.
Representatives from USG will be at the corner of 15th Avenue and High Street, as well as at the bus stop outside of Dreese Laboratory on Neil Avenue, from 12 p.m.-2 p.m. today collecting signatures.
Students can also stop by the USG office on the second floor of the Ohio Union to obtain a postcard.
All signed cards must be returned to a student government representative by tomorrow morning to be included in the drop-off at Gov. Taft's office.
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