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Students travel to capital to rally for lower tuition

Posted on Mar 08, 2010 in News

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When it comes to higher education, students from across the state united as a team in Montgomery to deliver a message — fair funding.

Last Thursday students from 13 Alabama universities gathered for a rally in front of the state house to promote higher education.

Among the list of speakers were Gov. Bob Riley and Lt. Gov. Jim Folsom.

The goal of the rally was to acknowledge the importance of higher education.

The message was clear.

Riley said, “The amount of opportunity that you have is going to be directly proportional to the education that you get.

“If we can be number one in football, we can be number one in education. Let’s get this economy going, let’s get everyone back to work, let’s put more money into higher ed. We are doing more for higher ed than we have ever done before.”

A group of UAB students were included in this event.

“I am fighting for lower tuition and student rights to attend college. I am having to skip a semester to pay off last semesters tuition,” said Michael Crumb, a sophomore.

Crumb is probably not the only student from UAB who is struggling to pay tuition.

The cost for in-state residents has risen any where from 6 to 9 percent over the past couple of years.

Devin Jouvran, a senior, said he went to Montgomery “to protest the tuition being raised every year.”

“I have to work two jobs to pay for my apartment and to pay for school,” said Jouvran.

Even though tuition costs are at an all time high, the morale of the crowd was good.

Several university bands played and representatives from all 13 public universities brought forward cards from students expressing the importance of fair funding and higher education.

There were an estimated 2,000 plus in attendance.

“I think this is the biggest turnout we have ever had,” said Folsom.

“I support higher ed because it is the final stop before we train a workforce to go out into Alabama and across this nation and provide skills for all facets of life. You are the future of Alabama,” he said.

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