|
|
News Conference in opposition to SDSU Admission Change
SAN DIEGO - Changes to San Diego State University's admissions policy will limit long-promised access for local eligible students, asserts a coalition of students, parents, teachers, community members and community organizations that will convene a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
Under the prior admissions policy, students in the San Diego area were promised that if they worked hard and took the right courses they would be guaranteed admission into SDSU. In a highly controversial move, SDSU has changed its admissions policy to limit the number of local students who can enroll at the campus. The change will devastate college access for students who are place-bound by economic or family circumstances.
At a time when more and more local students are becoming eligible for SDSU, the campus is favoring out-of-area students. The change undermines the local admissions guarantee, which has increased college access for thousands of area students. The new policy betrays the promise of college access to local eligible students and outright denies access to place-bound students.
Opposition to the change is growing on the part of community organizations, teachers, students, parents, SDSU alumni and local elected officials. The press conference is one of a series of actions taken in response to the admissions change and is supported by the Education Consortium, NAACP, San Diego Latino/a Coalition, and the Association of Raza Educators, among others.
WHAT: News conference in opposition to SDSU admissions change
WHEN: Wednesday, Oct. 7th, 4 p.m.
WHERE: Lincoln High School, 4777 Imperial Ave, San Diego 92113
WHO: Richard Barrera, San Diego Unified School Board Trustee
Lei-Chala Wilson, NAACP President
Gracia Molina de Pick, SDSU Benefactor
Isidro Ortiz, Education Consortium and SDSU Professor
Eduardo Ochoa, Lincoln High School Teacher and SDSU Alum
High school students who are affected by policy change
FAQ on SDSU Admissions Policy Change
that Harms San Diego Area Students
What is the issue?
The administration at SDSU is in the process of eliminating the long-standing policy of guaranteeing admission to CSU-qualified local students. Up until now students who met minimum CSU requirements were admitted into SDSU. The new policy makes local students compete for slots with students from outside the service area (who are held to higher GPA & SAT requirements) and will set a quota/limit on the number of local students who will be admitted to the campus annually.
Is this necessary?
SDSU's claim that, for the first time, "we will not be able to accommodate all local area CSU-eligible students" does not appear to be supported by data. The projection is that SDSU will only enroll a total of 3,300 first-time freshmen in Fall 2010 (as opposed to 4,339 in Fall 2008). Between 2004 and 2008, SDSU enrolled between 1,105 and 2,329 first-time freshmen from the local area. There is room to accommodate all in-service area CSU-eligible students if SDSU wishes to do so, according to an analysis by the chair of the SDSU Academic Senate's Diversity, Equity and Outreach Committee).
Why was/is the local student guarantee important?
It was put into place because CSU recognized that many local students are "place bound"; they cannot go elsewhere to obtain education at another four year institution due to circumstances beyond their control. Over the years, the policy of guaranteeing admission to local students has benefited the students, SDSU, the region and its employers.
Why did SDSU change this policy?
The change was a choice made by the SDSU administration which has for some time been following the practice of discouraging local students from enrolling at SDSU in their drive to make SDSU a more elite institution. The California State University System did not require SDSU to reduce access for local students to the campus in order to cope with the budget cuts.
Why does it matter?
Analysis of the impact of this new policy by the chair of the SDSU Senate Committee on Diversity, Equity & Outreach concluded that the changes in policy will substantially limit access for local students. Latinos will be disproportionately affected; along with thousands of other students from the area, many will be deprived/denied of the opportunity for a baccalaureate degree since other comparable local public institutions (UCSD and Cal State San Marcos) are filled to capacity. Most of these students cannot afford private university fees or the exorbitant debt they necessitate. Obtaining a bachelor's degree elsewhere in California at a public university will cost the students and their parents thousands of dollars more.
Who should be concerned?
All who are concerned with equal educational opportunity and want our students in the region to be able to obtain bachelor's degree in the area; all who recognize the need to develop a local college educated workforce from our youth.
|
|
|
|
|
|
WHAT IS LA VOZ? La Voz is a personal e-mail list that over the last 12 years has worked towards keeping the San Diego non-profit, Latino, and community at large connected . It consists of e-mail contacts that include students, educators, elected officials and their representatives, media, organizers and activist, clergy, non-profit executive directors, and business leaders. La Voz consists of three weekly e-mails consisting of community events, grant and funding opportunities, and job opportunities. Additionally La Voz reserves the right to send out ocassional e-mails on behalf of its community partners and sponors. The majority of the e-mails are San Diego based but are increasingly becoming more diverse in geographic origin and relevance.The e-mails sent out are done as a free service and are not connected to any particular organization. | |
|
