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butterbean · Joined: 21 Jun 2006 Posts: 2271

For much of the fall semester at Woodland Community College, students from the campus club Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztl n have been reaching out to administrators because of anger over a lack of Mexican-American instructors on campus.

But students, unhappy with the lack of progress made at getting Latino instructors are vowing to go on strike March 30 unless their demands are met. They are also considering a legal challenge.

College counselor Jesse Ortiz said there has never been a Mexican-American instructor on staff, since the college first opened.

College fees drop $6 per unit at YCC, WCC
Yuba College students, including those in Woodland and elsewhere across the state, get a welcome change Monday when they begin paying less for their education.

Enrollment fees will drop from $26 to $20 per unit.

A typical 3-unit class now costs $78. It will cost $60 when changes go into effect on Monday.

Cutting the cost of enrollment is hoped to make up for a stiff fee hike enacted two years ago, officials said.

At that time, state lawmakers raised student fees from $18 to $26. Afterwards, some 314,000 students left community colleges across the state, a report later showed.

Beginning Monday, the $6 fee reduction will be available to all community college students enrolling for winter and spring courses, short-term courses and spring semester courses.

The California Community College Board of Governors approved the fee reduction as part of last summer's budget deliberations, and through the passage of AB 1808.

WCC's office of financial aid offers a variety of federal and state financial aid including grants, federal work/study programs, and loans.

Employing Latinos who aren't necessarily Mexican isn't representative of the school's population, as 90 percent of the Latino population is Mexican, he said.

WCC public information specialist Art Pimentel said college President Angela Fairchilds has made various promises to the students including a multicultural center that will be ready next year, reviewing the school's recruiting practices without breaking the Equal Employment Opportunity laws and the opportunity for the students to be a part of the diversity project team.

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http://www.dailydemocrat.com/news/ci_4936091