PETITION TO STATE REPRESENTATIVES TO SUPPORT CUNY

CUNY students want to persuade legislators to vote against the CUNY cuts and to encourage Governor Cuomo to allow CUNY to accomplish its educational mission. This public institution could be the only chance that many New York City residents have to achieve a job certificate or a degree. In contemporary society, the middle class is disappearing, and the gap between the rich and the poor is getting bigger. The lack of higher education determines that individuals would make minimum wages or would not be able to sell their labor power at all in the labor market. Our tactics to spread this message would be sending letters to the legislators asking to restore the funding for higher public education, to increase salaries for professors,higher per student based aid and more funding for college's improvements. We would sign petitions to save CUNY from starvation, unite efforts and mobilize with other students and professional staff, unions and constituents to defend CUNY and to demand quality and affordable public higher education in New York city. We are asking our legislators and senators to support public higher education and to reject the proposed budget cuts implemented by the Governor Cuomo.

Feb 14, 2016
Dear State Representative,
I understand the daunting fiscal challenges New York State is facing. However, an investment in public higher education is the best protection for the economic future of New York State. Investment in CUNY will maintain high quality and accessible educational opportunities for hundreds of thousands of families.
As a graduate of The City University of New York, I am concerned that
the proposed budget does not provide adequate funding for CUNY. A ten percent cut to the University's operating aid will have a detrimental effect on CUNY student support services and on the
availability of full-time faculty to teach in the classroom. CUNY is experiencing increasing enrollments as more people seek alternatives to unemployment and need access to career opportunities. We must maintain an affordable and quality education at our public higher education institutions.
CUNY alumni are valuable assets to New York State. Ten years after graduation, 80 percent of CUNY alumni continue to reside and work in New York State, enrich the local tax base and fuel the region's economy. They repay the investment made in their education through taxes paid over many years. Please help maintain the investment in CUNY so necessary to the public workforce.

Thank you for supporting public higher education at CUNY.

This message has been sent to the following decision makers:

•   State Representative Herman 'Denny' D. Farrell Jr.
  
•   State Representative Jeffrion L. Aubry 
•   State Senator John A. DeFrancisco 
•   State Senator Liz Krueger 

•   State Representative Kimberly Jean-Pierre
  
•   State Representative Matthew 'Matt' J. Titone
  
•   State Representative William Colton
  
•   State Senator Kenneth 'Ken' P. LaValle
  
•   State Representative Bob Oaks
  
•   State Representative Carl E. Heastie
  
•   State Senator Catharine 'Cathy' M. Young
  
•   State Senator John J. Flanagan Jr.
  
•   State Representative Earlene Hooper
  
•   State Representative Brian M. Kolb
  
•   State Senator Jeffrey 'Jeff' D. Klein
  
•   State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins
  
•   State Representative Amy R. Paulin
  
•   State Senator Jose R. Peralta
  
•   State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky
  
•   State Representative Francisco P. Moya
  
•   State Representative Deborah J. Glick
  
•   State Representative Andrew D. Hevesi
  
•   State Senator Joseph 'Joe' P. Addabbo Jr.