Rally for Higher Education

This is a cross-post of Isaiah Nelson’s email to the College of Charleston student body. If you have questions, please send an email to scrallyforhighered@gmail.com.

Students:

Did you know that the State of Georgia spends roughly $20,000 per college student in its state, while South Carolina spends $5,000?

Did you know that the College is only 8% state funded, but was 16.7% state funded in 2008, and 30% funded in the 1990s?

Did you know that our SC Colleges have grown 86% since 1986, but they receive the same amount of funding that they did in 1986 from the state?

These are challenging times for our Colleges and Universities in South Carolina. With decreased state funding for higher education, state universities are going to be forced to continue to raise tuition to keep providing the services we come to expect. It is time we come together as a student body and proclaim the importance of our schools and ensure they continue to receive adequate funding from the state so our schools stay of quality and of affordability.

On February 15th, your SGA will be teaming up with the SGAs from Clemson and USC to host a “Rally for Higher Education” on the steps of the state house to show our state that students are concerned about the lack of funding we are receiving. I would like to invite you to participate in this by coming up to Columbia with us and to plead the case that we need support for our Colleges and Universities. The SGA is planning on renting buses for the day so we can transport students up and back to Columbia.

The decrease in funding means we do not have a 24 hour library, PASCAL Delivers is almost non-existent, and our student activities are in danger. We need to ensure our Colleges are supported and thrive in the years to come, and this is a small way you can help in accomplishing that.

If you are interested in attending, please respond to this e-mail or to scrallyforhighered@gmail.com. Thanks so much for your support, and I look forward bringing you to Columbia to have this conversation with our General Assembly.

Isaiah