State and local lawmakers held a five-hour public forum with Sonoma State leaders, faculty and students to discuss the proposed budget cuts Friday at the SSU Student Center Ballroom.
Emily Cutrer, SSU’s interim president, announced budget cuts that would eliminate more than 20 of the university’s programs and fire more than 130 faculty members in an email on Jan. 22.
More than 100 students, faculty, alumni and community members gathered in the Seawolf Plaza before the meeting to make speeches opposing the cuts. Crowd members waved signs that read “Which one of my professors is next?” and “Cuts bleed!” while organizers led them in chants that answered “Whose campus is this?” with “Our campus!”
At 1:30 p.m., the energized crowd filled the ballroom as the first of three panels sat before co-chairs Sen. Christopher Cabaldon and Assembly Member Damon Connolly, as well as Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire, Assembly Majority Leader Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, Assembly Member Chris Rogers and Congressman Mike Thompson.
The legislators’ opening statements expressed concerns over a lack of transparency by the university. “I found out about this the evening before the cuts were announced on a Zoom with the interim president,” Thompson said.
This absence of communication was not limited to Thompson. “The day of the announcement, I had received a phone call 10 minutes before the notice was going to be sent to the entire campus,” said Associated Student Body President Vanessa Sanchez.
The university also shared inaccurate figures, according to ecologist and SSU lecturer Wendy St. John. Though the administration had originally said that the layoffs affected 10% of the faculty, the university is actually losing more than 25% when taking into account lecturers and athletics coaches, according to St. John.
Laid off faculty are effectively out of the academic job market for an entire year, according to SSU economics professor Merlin Hanauer. This was highlighted as one of many harms that could result from these cuts— especially for someone like SSU geology professor Owen Anfinson, who shared that his son is expected to be born the day after he is laid off.
“As faculty, our primary responsibilities are teaching and student advocacy,” Hanauer said. “Right now, it feels like no one’s been advocating for us.”
SSU’s proposed cuts are a warning sign for the future of the CSU system, which is currently bracing for a $375 million cut in this coming year’s state budget, according to CSU Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer Steve Relyea.
“We have the outline of a plan,” Cutrer said. Later, she referred to the plan as “very concrete” and assured legislators that they would see it in 30 to 60 days.
As the forum extended past its intended end time of 5 p.m., more than 50 students, faculty and alumni lined up to share their stories with the legislators and university and CSU representatives.
“I am transgender and Mexican,” said one SSU student. “I have never felt more seen and respected in my entire life than I have here on this campus. I know for a fact that I belong here, but our administration doesn’t.”
Another student, a first-generation American, said, “I wake up every day in fear wondering whether or not my family is gonna be here tomorrow, and now I wake up with an added fear whether or not my school is gonna be here.”
First-generation students make up 46% of SSU’s total population, according to the university’s website.
Legislators Damon, Cabaldon and McGuire kept the forum open until the last person in line had spoken— two hours after the scheduled end time. The crowd had filtered down to about 60 people clad in SSU merch, some still holding signs from the earlier rally.
Stefan Kiesbye, an SSU creative writing professor, was one of the final speakers of the night. “The arts and humanities are what makes life worth living,” he said. “We are the meaning of life, and we are being eradicated here.”
SSU is not the first campus to be hit by these statewide budget cuts, and it will not be the last, according to Relyea.
“Based on the state budget plans, each university was directed to reduce their budgets based on their share of the operating budget,” he said. “From $6 million at Sonoma State to over $30 million at San Diego State.”
Since last year, the CSU system has eliminated more than 1200 positions, 1400 core sections, and 136 degree programs, according to Relyea..
McGuire promised the SSU community that they will “have a seat at the table” from here on out. Legislators intend to return to the campus after receiving a plan from the university’s administration, according to McGuire.
“I have colleagues on the floor of the Senate who don’t exactly know where Sonoma is, but they do know about these cuts,” Cabaldon said. “Right now in the legislature, everyone knows about what’s happening in Sonoma State.”
Community members are encouraged to voice their concerns to the legislators by emailing [email protected].
Additional reporting by Destiny Quiroz-Lindauer
