Stop the Elimination of Outreach Programs

To:  Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and the State Secretary of Education Richard Riordan

I am writing to express my strongest opposition to the proposed elimination and further funding cuts to University of California Outreach Programs. I am deeply concerned that eliminating services to underrepresented and low income students from families that have not traditionally attended college will further widen the social, economic and educational inequities in California. We need to commit sufficient resources that will sustain effective programs in order to secure the future prosperity of our state.

UC outreach represents less than 1\% of the 2.9 billion dollar UC budget. If there is no other solution, at the minimum, change the reduction to an undesignated cut so UC can absorb its fair share without targeting outreach programs. Cutting these programs will NOT close the budget gap, and will send a negative message to the state’s most disadvantaged students that the state cares little about their future.

The Governor’s new proposal eliminates all state funding for UC and CSU Outreach—funding that has been a lifeline for students seeking to attend college. These cuts threaten the opportunity for a college education to more than 110,000 students participating in effective academic preparation programs; 40\% of the African American and Latino freshman now attending UC participated in UC Outreach. Diminishing the college dreams of so many students places them, their schools, and the state at risk.

K—12 schools and community colleges will lose academic support for services they do not have the resources to provide. UC Outreach has been mistakenly referred to as “recruitment” but the programs do far more than encourage students to attend UC. UC Outreach includes programs such as Early Academic Outreach (EAOP), MESA, PUENTE, and UC College Prep (UCCP) to name a few. Services to K—12 students and schools include development programs during and after school, direct work with teachers and research. All focus on educational achievement and help students from California’s poorest neighborhoods to be college-ready. At UC Davis, our outreach programs have increased the number of UC eligible students pursuing a higher education at UC, CSU, and California Community College. Our partnerships with community colleges have resulted in increased transfer rates, particularly among underrepresented students. The students most affected by these cuts are those most in need of outreach services. Please keep me informed of your position. <

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The Stop the Elimination of Outreach Programs Petition to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and the State Secretary of Education Richard Riordan was created by Students for Access to Education and written by Mingzhao Xu (mxu@ucdavis.edu).  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form.