The 2011 Rutgers Tuition Protests were a series of primarily student-led public education reform initiatives at

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city in and the seat of government of Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.tuition Tuition payments, usually known as tuition in American English and as tuition fees in Commonwealth English, are fees charged by education institutions for instruction or other services. Besides public spending (by governments and other public bo ...

cap, campus groups (including the Rutgers Student Union, the Rutgers One Coalition and the Rutgers University Student Assembly, supported by New Jersey United Students), mobilized to keep the increase in annual student financial obligation to a minimum through marches,

sit-in A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area for a protest, often to promote political, social, or economic change. The protestors gather conspicuously in a space or building, refusing to mo ...

s, letters to administration officials, and forums.

State and federal legislation

The

Pell Grant A Pell Grant is a subsidy the U.S. federal government provides for students who need it to pay for college. Federal Pell Grants are limited to students with financial need, who have not earned their first bachelor's degree, or who are enrolled i ...

, a federal annuity of $5,500 available to low-income students, faced a relatively steep cut in 2011 as Republicans in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

pushed for further limits on discretionary spending.Diduch, Mary. "US Congress Proposes Cuts to Pell Grant - The Daily Targum: News." The Daily Targum: Serving the Rutgers Community since 1869. Daily Targum, 17 Feb. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011.. In 2008, this program provided in excess of $31 million to over 10,000 Rutgers University students."Office of Federal Relations: Financial Aid." Office of Federal Relations: Home. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 15 Aug. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. http://federalrelations.rutgers.edu/fin_aid.shtml . Rich Williams, an advocate of the New Jersey

Public Interest Research Group Public Interest Research Groups (PIRGs) are a federation of U.S. and Canadian non-profit organizations that employ grassroots organizing and direct advocacy on issues such as consumer protection, public health and transportation. The PIRGs are cl ...

, stated that grants are the principal method in which the federal government can assist students in battling rising college tuition costs. He opined that if changes are made to the current program, 1.5 million students would be at risk of losing their funding, while the remaining 7.7 million students could see a 15 percent drop in the amount of attainable awards. During the 2010–2011 academic year, 68 percent of Rutgers students reportedly borrowed through a federal loan program at some point in their collegiate career."Common Data Set 2010-11: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey: University-Wide." Common Data Set 2010-11. 2011. Web. 5 Dec. 2011. . Governor

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, lobbyist, and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. Christie, who was born in N ...

's proposed budget showed a $25 million increase in tuition aid for college students.Zhdankin, Dmitry. "NJ Split on Proposed State Budget - The Daily Targum: University." The Daily Targum: Serving the Rutgers Community since 1869. Daily Targum, 3 Mar. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . On the other hand, there are combined decreases of $7.7 million in state funding for the New Jersey Student Tuition Assistance Reward Scholarship program and other student aid programs. David Redlawsk, poll director, stated that the governor understands the state's responsibility to do more for higher education and is protecting the university.

Tuition policy

Typical in-state students pay $12,755 annually in tuition and mandatory fees, excluding

room and board Room and board is a phrase describing a situation in which, in exchange for money, labor or other considerations, a person is provided with a place to live as well as meals on a comprehensive basis. It commonly occurs as a fee at higher educatio ...

, while out-of-state students pay $25,417 in tuition and fees."Annual Tuition & Fees." Rutgers , Rutgers Admissions. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . A breakdown of the tuition and fees (by semester) is as follows: tuition, campus fee, school fee, off-campus campus fee,

dormitory A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or universi ...

charges, meal plan, computer fee, NJPIRG fee,

Targum A targum ( arc, תרגום 'interpretation, translation, version') was an originally spoken translation of the Hebrew Bible (also called the ''Tanakh'') that a professional translator ( ''mǝturgǝmān'') would give in the common language of the ...

fee and course fee."Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey 2011-2012 Tuition and Fees by Semester Undergraduate Schools - New Brunswick Campus." Rutgers.edu. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 2011. Web. 5 Dec. 2011. . According to the Rutgers University Board of Governors, tuition and fee rates are set in July.Foderaro, Lisa W
"Students at Rutgers Occupy a Building."
NY Times, 27 Apr. 2011. Web. 5 Dec. 2011.

Contributing factors

At a glance the cause of the Rutgers tuition protests appear to be simple; however, further scrutiny in the matter reveal local, state and federal involvement to play a more central role in these events. Three years ago, Rutgers froze pay raises on staff and faculty. The union decided in good faith to share the burden with the university and withheld raises for one year. Since then, the university still has not paid raises, amounting to $40 million.Talib, Tabish. "Students Share Tactics on Creating Change - The Daily Targum: News: Rutgers United Students against Sweatshops, Take Back the Economy, Voorhees Mall,." The Daily Targum: Serving the Rutgers Community since 1869. Daily Targum, 13 Oct. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . In addition, the

American Association of University Professors The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is an organization of professors and other academics in the United States. AAUP membership includes over 500 local campus chapters and 39 state organizations. The AAUP's stated mission ...

recently funded an independent research on the university's budget, conducted by Howard Bunsis of

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

. Test results showed that the faculty's salary raises were stagnant despite a $177 million surplus in the budget the previous year. The university has yet to confirm this study's analysis. New federal and state

health care Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health pr ...

laws are also affecting the rise in tuition costs. Legislations requiring full-time college and university students to have

health insurance Health insurance or medical insurance (also known as medical aid in South Africa) is a type of insurance that covers the whole or a part of the risk of a person incurring medical expenses. As with other types of insurance, risk is shared among m ...

will subsequently raise the cost of minimum coverage provided by the university.Kypers, Neil P. "Health Care Laws up Cost of Tuition - The Daily Targum: News." The Daily Targum: Serving the Rutgers Community since 1869. Daily Targum, 30 Mar. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . James Breeding, director of Risk Management and Insurance at Rutgers, stated, "Effective this coming year, we are going to have a hard waiver program that has a minimum limit of $100,000," he continues, "an increase of between $600 and $800 from the mandatory coverage provided currently with a limit of $5,000 at about $170 per student, which anyone without insurance must pay." Students without health insurance are compelled to buy into this particular program, but at competitive costs. Those with insurance can opt out of the hard waiver program, a change from the former policy regarding a mandatory fee on students' bills. Recent outbreaks at Rutgersfest have also worried students about tuition costs. Rutgersfest is an annual block party and concert hosting tens of thousands of people to celebrate the end of the school year. The event typically garners major artists to perform and provides a plethora of games for students to play. Students pay almost $1,200 in campus and student fees each year, of which a portion of the fees go to Rutgersfest.Marcus, Aaron. "Rutgersfest Further Damages U. - The Daily Targum: Columnists." The Daily Targum: Serving the Rutgers Community since 1869. Daily Targum, 18 Apr. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . Free and open to the public, the event had between 40,000 and 50,000 attendees this year, including high school and college students from other schools.Star-Ledger, Jerry McCrea/The. "Rutgers to Permanently Cancel Annual Rutgersfest Concert , NJ.com." New Jersey Local News, Breaking News, Sports & Weather - NJ.com. Nj.com, 19 Apr. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . However, four confirmed shootings at the event proves Rutgersfest too dangerous and will permanently close, says University President

Richard L. McCormick Richard Levis McCormick (born December 26, 1947) is a historian, professor and president emeritus of Rutgers University. Early life The son of Richard Patrick McCormick, a Rutgers professor and administrator, and Katheryne C. Levis, a University ...

. Based on these events, one student urged a limitation on student-run programming, suggesting that their student fees are being wasted.

Protests

On April 13, 2011, hundreds of Rutgers students and demonstrators marched from

Voorhees Mall Voorhees Mall is a large grassy area with stately shade trees on a block (sometimes known as "Voorhees Campus") of about 28 acres (0.11 km²) located on the College Avenue Campus of Rutgers University near downtown New Brunswick, New Jerse ...

to Old Queens on the New Brunswick campus protesting tuition hikes and diminishing financial aid to higher education.Millicker, Anastasia, and Kristine R. Enerio. "Walk into Action' Draws in Hundreds - The Daily Targum: News." The Daily Targum: Serving the Rutgers Community since 1869. Daily Targum, 13 Apr. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . The President commended the students on their campaign; however, he could not promise them a tuition freeze.Star-Ledger, Patti Sapone/The. "Rutgers Students March in New Brunswick to Protest Tuition Hikes, N.J. Funding Cuts , NJ.com." New Jersey Local News, Breaking News, Sports & Weather - NJ.com. Nj.com, 13 Apr. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . The New Jersey United Students' (NJUS) "Walk in Action" protest brought tuition increases to the forefront of university issues. Since the

protest march A political demonstration is an action by a mass group or collection of groups of people in favor of a political or other cause or people partaking in a protest against a cause of concern; it often consists of walking in a mass march formati ...

, a group of students representing a variety of campus organizations has scheduled regular meetings with President McCormick. In 2010, "a cap limited the increase in tuition to 4 percent, but this year, public colleges are likely to have the ability to set their own rates, meaning the rise could be higher...President McCormick predicted the tuition increases would be less than 10 percent.""Rutgers Students Stage Protest Against Increased Tuition Costs , Top Colleges Blog." Top-Colleges. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . On Wednesday April 27, approximately 20 studentsStaff, Star-Ledger. "Rutgers University Students Protest Tuition Hikes with Sit-in inside Administrative Building , NJ.com." New Jersey Local News, Breaking News, Sports & Weather - NJ.com. Nj.com, 27 Apr. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . occupied a third- floor landing of Old Queens, the administrative building and office of President McCormick, with a list of demands to the university President. The students claimed that President McCormick had yet to meet their demands by their deadline two days ago. Their demands included requesting McCormick to support a tuition freeze, place three students on the Rutgers Board of Governors as voting members and provide students with 10 free transcripts. They also demanded an increase in wages for Rutgers workers whose salaries were currently frozen. Of the students who were involved with the sit-in, 11 had announced they would be spending the night in the building. They were willing to "stay until their demands have been met and prepared to be arrested." One reporter noted that during the sit-in, "students used

Skype Skype () is a proprietary telecommunications application operated by Skype Technologies, a division of Microsoft, best known for VoIP-based videotelephony, videoconferencing and voice calls. It also has instant messaging, file transfer, debi ...

and other internet sites to view the classes they were missing and receive notes from their classmates. Other students also brought the protesters pizza, juice boxes, ice cream, strawberries and other food." Students were notified by the university officials that they were "trespassing" but stood no risk of arrest at the time of the announcement. Other students around campus gathered in front of Old Queens in support of the protestors. Roughly 30 students showed up that evening and pitched a tent with a sign that read, "Education is a right." Some students marched around the area to the beat of

bongo drum Bongos ( es, bongó) are an Afro-Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of small open bottomed hand drums of different sizes. They are struck with both hands, most commonly in an eight-stroke pattern called ''martillo'' (hammer). The ...

s, chanting, "The administration ain't so tough, unless they put us all in cuffs." The sit-in lasted until Thursday evening, of which only 9 students remained.Star-Ledger, Tom Wright-Piersanti/The. "Rutgers Students Extend Sit-in Protest against Tuition Costs to Second Day , NJ.com." New Jersey Local News, Breaking News, Sports & Weather - NJ.com. Nj.com, 28 Apr. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . The group voluntarily left despite the university not having agreed with any of their listed demands. No arrests were made.Trigg, Cathleen. "Rutgers Students Hold Sit-In to Protest Tuition Hikes." New York News , New York Breaking News , News Headlines For NYC. 28 Apr. 2011. Web. 05 Dec. 2011. . In the following July, the

Board of Governors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organi ...

voted on a 1.8 percent tuition increase, the lowest in two decades.

References

{{reflist, 30em Education reform Education in New Jersey Rutgers University