The CUNY Board of Trustees has voted to increase the tuition once again, this time by $120, putting the extra money towards health and wellness resources. The resources will be put towards facilities such as mental health counseling, women’s healthcare products, and more. Having more resources on campus, a place that’s supposed to be a “home away from home” is going to be a big improvement, but students are demanding to see the changes. “Right now we have STD testing, flu shots, and other routine vaccinations, pain relievers. We’re able to check blood pressure, temperature, and do pregnancy tests,” said Kalua, the Queens College mental health center’s office assistant. “We’re…
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OP-ED: Raising the student activity fee should be the last resort
If the student activity fee were increased, would the benefits to student life on campus outweigh the financial burden this would put on students? That question is not so easily answered. Queens College’s student activity fee is currently $162 per student. With approximately 20,000 students attending QC, this means there is an estimated amount of $3.24 million dollars devoted to fund over 100 clubs at QC. The money also covers organizations such as the Committee for Disabled Students, the Child Development Center and services for students such as the QC shuttle bus. Clubs and student life are vital to the college experience and important resources that all students should have…
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Call for More Funding for CUNY Schools in 2020
CUNY schools are said to be some of the most affordable schools there are for undergraduate and graduate education, but is that really the case? According to Student Debt Relief, the national average for undergraduates during the 2017-2018 school year was $9,970 for in-state residents at public universities, and $25,620 for out-of-state residents at four-year institutions. For four year private schools, the average is $34,740. Either way, more people are graduating with debt than ever. According to CNBC and the College Board, “the average cumulative student debt balance in 2017 was $26,900 for graduates of public four-year schools and $32,600 for graduates of private nonprofit four-year schools.” CUNY’s website lists…
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New Semester, Same Old Questions – How Am I Going to Afford My Degree?
A new semester starts, but many of the same questions about how to afford a college degree remain. For too many students, college is still far from free. Between rising tuition and fees, mounting textbook prices, rent, food, transit, and even child care expenses, Queens College students deserve a break! Flat state funding has left the burden of paying for our expanding CUNY and SUNY institutions increasingly on the backs of students and their families. Tuition has gone up over 35% in just seven years at New York’s public universities. The state has two tuition aid programs which are designed to provide free tuition to low and middle income students.…
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Student groups demand lawmakers make college affordable
Last week the New York Public Interest Group unveiled a coalition of over 350 student groups and organizations calling on the New York State Legislature and the Governor to increase state aid to the City University of New York and the State University of New York, reject an extension of the “rational tuition” hikes, and freeze tuition at the current 2015-2016 academic year rates. Nearly 40 clubs signed onto the letter at Queens College, including the QC Dream Team, the Hakuna Matata Club and the Caribbean Association to name a few. Since the SUNY 2020 legislation was signed into law in 2011, the state’s so-called “rational tuition” policy has caused tuition at public colleges to skyrocket – increasing…
