Students with a homework assignment to organize a protest did just that Thursday afternoon on Turlington Plaza, choosing to demonstrate against escalating education costs.
The students, enrolled in a class called "Social Problems," protested UF's 15 percent tuition increase, changes to the Bright Futures scholarship and the proposed student fee to fund part of the $70 million to $80 million in Reitz Union renovations, among other things.
Their teacher, Meggan Jordan — a graduate student — joined in as students marched in a circle, hoisted homemade signs and chanted phrases like “We say no! Our fees must go!”
“The theme of the class has been speaking out, speaking truth to power and knowing when you’re getting screwed,” Jordan said.
Students who didn’t feel like participating were allowed to sit the protest out, she said.
Steven Shanik, one of two leaders of the event, directed the protest from atop a concrete table in the plaza.
Shanik, a UF freshman, said rising tuition and declining support from scholarships like Bright Futures is squeezing some potential students out of a chance to get a college education in Florida.
UF raised tuition by 15 percent this year, the maximum allowed each year under a new state law that lets state universities raise tuition until they reach the national average.
As a result, tuition and fees for most undergraduates at UF are now $145.76 per credit hour, up from $125.91.
Meanwhile, Bright Futures will continue to pay only $126 per credit hour for Academic Scholars, the highest scholarship level.
UF students could also see their fees increase by $20 a year, in addition to $3 more per credit hour to pay for renovations to the Reitz Union.
Jordan, who was standing next to a sign protesting the fee, said it would impact graduate students — particularly those with families — more than undergraduates, because they are not eligible for Bright Futures.
“You’re basically taking money out of the pockets of families,” she said.
