Students protest tuition hikes

A diverse array of students united on the West Mall Wednesday to protest the tuition increase proposed to take effect next fall.

The march drew close to 100 students who made their way wielding picket signs and packages of Ramen noodles through the UT Tower to a public forum on the proposed increase held in the ACES building.

The Tuition Accountability Coalition, the group organizing the march, includes members of the Young Conservatives of Texas, University Democrats, College Republicans and Student Government.

Signs reading "Can't Afford to Pay, Can't Afford to Stay" and "15,000 dollars in debt" were scattered throughout the crowd, and protestors were fired up by an impromptu percussion performance from Oziene Experience.

The Tuition Policy Advisory Committee hosted the forum on the proposed increase Wednesday afternoon. Some students at the march were unsatisfied with the lack of publicity given to the forum and the event's timing.

The University must submit its proposal to the UT System Board of Regents this month. The regents are expected to make a final decision in February.

"For a campus of 50,000 students, to have two forums a week before the end of the semester is not a democratic process in which students are being empowered," said Ansel Herz, journalism senior and member of the Tuition Accountability Coalition.

Many students who wanted to attend were unable to because the 3 p.m. forum conflicted with their class schedules, Herz said.

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