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C I T Y C O L L E G E O F S A N F R A N C I S C O ’ S N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1 9 3 5
Volume 152, Issue 2
TheGuardsman.com
September 7 - September 21, 2011
Transfer faster with new degree
Veterans lose break pay, G.I. bill changes By Esther Harris
By Brian Rinker
THE GUARDSMAN
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Recent changes to the Post 9/11 Veterans Assistance Improvement Act have forced roughly 1,300 student veterans at City College to adapt to bill revisions such as the elimination of break pay and the increase of enrolled minimum units required to be eligible for benefits. “My September check is about $1000 when normally it would be $2400,” said Aundray Rogers, behavioral science major at City College and single father of three. “I had to take out loans to supplement the loss of funds,” Rogers served six years in the army while pursuing his education. With slashed break pay and an increase from 7 to 12 enrolled unit requirement, he said it is far more difficult to balance school and raise his kids aged 13, 8, and 5. “I went into to the military straight up for college. They should go back to full benefits so we don’t have to scramble,” he said. Cutting break pay means funds will be available only when school is in session. All housing and other allow-
THE GUARDSMAN
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California’s last ditch money saving “trigger” may soon be pulled due to the poorly recovering economy - putting into use fine print in California’s budget plan to bail out the cash strapped California Community College system. On August 22, 2011, California Community College Chancellor Jack Scott and California State University Chancellor Charles B. Reed held a telephone press conference regarding possible increases in tuition fees, to be made in the midst of the 20112012 academic year. Chancellor Reed explained: “Just last week the Department of Finance and the State Controller’s office reported that revenue
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Fee increase hits City College By Anna Shoriak
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THE GUARDSMAN
Community colleges statewide are now offering a new type of associate degree designed to help students streamline the transfer process to a California State University baccalaureate program, but not without a making some skeptics along the way. Last September the transfer degree was signed into state legislation as the Student Transfer Achievement Act. All community colleges are governed by state law and were required to offer the transfer degree for 20112012 school years. Majors must be state approved and follow the framework outline by the transfer degree curriculum. “Every community college would create a transfer degree of no more than 60 units,” California Community Colleges Chancellor Jack Scott said in a press conference Aug. 22. “It would have the exact kind of general education requirements that’s true of the California State University.” When the requirements are met a student may then transfer to a CSU, where only 60 units
collections were down about 9%. That’s a trigger for the Community Colleges, CSUs, and UCs that says in December, if the state doesn’t collect a certain amount of revenue, somebody in Finance is going to pull that trigger…” Chancellor Scott went on to state “We (Community Colleges) will take a 102 million dollar cut if both the trigger cuts are pulled and the problem is that the state…decided… if that happens, they’re going to raise our tuition from $36 a unit to $46 a unit in mid year.” Instead of paying $540 for a 15-unit course load per semester ($1,080 annually), students would be paying $690 a single semester ($1,380 per year). This is a make or break situation for many BUDGET CUTS: !"#$%& INFORGRAPHIC BY CLARIVEL FONG AND ANNA SHORIAK / PHOTOS COUTRESY OF MCT