Community college and senior college students from the City University of New York (CUNY) took to the steps of City Hall today with Speaker Gifford Miller and Higher Education Committee Chair Charles Barron. Students, armed with signs and slogans, thanked the City Council for their support and urged the Mayor to reinvest in higher education.

"We are here to urge the Mayor to do right by CUNY students," said Camille Rivera, Chairperson of NYPIRG¹s Board of Directors and Queens College student. "Students are thrilled that the Council restored the cuts to CUNY and now look toward the Executive to make the same commitment to higher education," she said.

"The Mayor must maintain the Council¹s commitment to the Peter Vallone scholarship," echoed Charlene Piper, a Brooklyn College Merit Scholar. "Without this scholarship, I know that I would have to drop out of school because I simply couldn¹t afford the costs."

Prior to the news conference, students met with Council Members. They also delivered information packets to the Mayor¹s office, which was unavailable to meet during CUNY Day. Last Friday, CUNY students delivered 4,000 letters to the City Council leadership and to the Mayor, urging for higher education support.

In their letters and lobby meetings, students stressed the importance of an affordable, accessible, high-quality college education. They advocated for a final city budget that includes (see attached fact sheet for more details):

• Full restoration of funding for the Peter F. Vallone Merit Scholarship.
• Increased funding for community and senior colleges.
• A city commitment to the one-third funding level for community colleges.
• Increased funding for more full-time faculty lines.

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