Students Rally Against Raise

At least a hundred students, faculty and community members gathered on Tuesday, February 2nd at Yuba College to protest Chancellor Nicki Harrington’s pay raise. A gathering that, according to Yuba College Faculty Association president Lisa Jensen-Martin, “is unprecedented for Yuba College.” Several faculty members and students spoke out against the nearly $30,000 pay raise that Harrington received in a closed session Board Meeting on January 20th, 2010, and it has been noted that the manner in which this raise was approved may be in violation of the Brown Act. Many members of the audience carried signs around with slogans saying: “Our time is now!”, “Recall the board!” as well as chanting “No need for greed!” “The situation led me to think of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air of all people,” said Professor Travis Smith. “Someone started making trouble in our neighborhood. The Board of Trustees and Chancellor Harrington. Somehow it got flip turned upside down. We’re not thinking about students first any longer. We’ve got to get this back.” He also said, “Let’s keep the pressure on.” Student Trustee Stephen Frothingham stated that “I really feel as if I’ve let you guys down at this last Board meeting because that’s when they first talked about the raise. They didn’t mention it was a raise but they did mention the dollar amount and I should’ve been on it. I should’ve mentioned something and I apoligize. But at this next Board meeting, if she doesn’t act; if she doesn’t say she’s rejecting this raise, I will stand up and say my piece, will stand up and voice you guys’ opinions.” “A raise of such magnitude is really questionable and wasn’t really thought out.”, said Dr. Kevin Orton. He also stated that this raise “wasn’t really a question of merit. Student Alex Yamada said that he “feels that more extreme action is necessary”. He went on to say that “I think the fact that more than than thirty of the faculty members have been laid off; the fact that certain faculty members cannot go into full retirement for for fear that the programs they lead will be discontinued is disgusting. The students are suffering, that faculty is suffering; and that is woman still has the guile to accept a raise that’s this substantial is appalling.”