Editorial: Scrapping student services and programs

For a college that promises an “Education for Life” on its web site, the administration at Yuba College has done little to promote a meaningful education now, let alone for life. For what is an education without exposure to different aesthetic forms, world traditions, and avant-garde concepts offered by the Cultural Events Series? What good is an education if valuable offices such as the Reentry Center are closed? And can a meaningful education exist without an exchange of significant information and vigorous dialogue found in a student newspaper? Yet the Cultural Events series has been “suspended” by the current administration, the Reentry Center is no more, and after Spring 2002, the student newspaper must fend for itself since, understandably, the community newspaper cannot continue to pay the high cost of its printing. (Yuba College’s powers-that-be, while graciously providing a classroom and instructor, have not yet committed themselves to funding the actual printing of a student newspaper.)In a time of ethnic and cultural division, when racially motivated hate crimes are on the rise nation-wide, the administration has dismissed the need for a Cultural Events Series that would promote understanding. Yet another supposed “budget crisis” is cited as the reason for scrapping the one redeeming peace endeavor at Yuba College. Something that brought a little civilization to the area– gone!Lack of money is also attributed by the administration for abandoning the Reentry Center, open since 1975, for a merged program that makes no promises of continued funding for reentry students. For many, bus passes, book vouchers and textbook loans will be dependent on continued funding from “various sources.” Yet the college had enough money to give President Epler a $19,496 raise in salary between the last two academic years. And a $5,736 raise over the same two academic years went to Phil Krebs (Foundation, Grants and Development Director) whose job it is to find funding for college programs such as the Cultural Events Series. You know, the one that was suspended for lack of funding. Yuba College officials adamantly claim that they support our student press, but encouraging words will not keep a newspaper afloat. Paper, ink, and printing cost money– provided by advertisers in the “real world” but provided by a supportive administration on most college campuses. We can only hope that Virginia Harrington, the new Yuba College president, will encourage this kind of administrative support in the future. Unlike Epler, she will have to make some tough decisions about the importance of a student press when the generous donations stop and Yuba College must fend for itself.We hope she will change the trend of the current administration of cutting valuable student services or leaving them to wither.