Oswego State students were given the opportunity to send postcards to the governor’s office as a part of an initiative to get a bill signed that guarantees SUNY and CUNY schools funding.

The Maintenance of Effort (MOE) bill would ensure an increase in state funding to SUNY and CUNY schools covering mandatory, inflationary cost such as heating and electric bills.

According to the United University Professions (UUP) Oswego Chapter President and Oswego State philosophy instructor Lorri Nash, hopes the state will see the effect that this bill will have on students.

“I want to see that the state is giving more support to the SUNY system, increasing the support so that less of the burden is on the backs of families and students paying tuition,” Nash said.

In 2011, Governor Cuomo established the NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant Program which was meant to use rational tuition increases and enhance educational programs such as decrease class sizes and increase student to faculty ratios state wide.

Since then, this rational tuition increase has been used to offset shortfalls in state funding such as day-to-day operations such as building maintenance and campuses utilities instead of being put towards education.

According to the UUP, state support for SUNY’s state-operated campuses has decreased from $1.32 billion, to $950 million while the revenue from SUNY student tuition and fees have increased from $915 million to $1.71 billion. Currently students are paying 64 percent of the cost of running SUNY, while the state pays 36 percent.

With the support of coalition and unions such as the UUP, the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPRYG), the Professional Staff Congress (PSC) and the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT), the MOE bill was passed in June of this year by the New York Legislature to mandate the state to fund maintenance operations and to put the increase in tuition towards improving education.

According to Nash the reason for the collisions involvement is that the state is not paying as much as they used to pay and students are paying a lot more.

“That is most important to us that students are taking too much of the burden and the state should be taking more of the burden,” Nash said.

For the past four months, the bill has been waiting for the governor’s signature. Yet, it is not until Gov. Cuomo request to sign the bill that the MOE bill will be officially approved.

In an effort to get the bill on the top of the governor’s priority, UUP is promoting a SUNY-wide postcard campaign. Students will have the opportunity to fill out a postcard addressed to the governor. Student Association is partnering with Nash to encourage Oswego State to join

Oswego State students were given the opportunity to send postcards to the governor’s office as a part of an initiative to get a bill signed that guarantees SUNY and CUNY schools funding.

The Maintenance of Effort (MOE) bill would ensure an increase in state funding to SUNY and CUNY schools covering mandatory, inflationary cost such as heating and electric bills.

According to the United University Professions (UUP) Oswego Chapter President and Oswego State philosophy instructor Lorri Nash, hopes the state will see the effect that this bill will have on students.

“I want to see that the state is giving more support to the SUNY system, increasing the support so that less of the burden is on the backs of families and students paying tuition,” Nash said.

In 2011, Governor Cuomo established the NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant Program which was meant to use rational tuition increases and enhance educational programs such as decrease class sizes and increase student to faculty ratios state wide.

Since then, this rational tuition increase has been used to offset shortfalls in state funding such as day-to-day operations such as building maintenance and campuses utilities instead of being put towards education.

According to the UUP, state support for SUNY’s state-operated campuses has decreased from $1.32 billion, to $950 million while the revenue from SUNY student tuition and fees have increased from $915 million to $1.71 billion. Currently students are paying 64 percent of the cost of running SUNY, while the state pays 36 percent.

With the support of collisions and unions such as the UUP, the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPRYG), the Professional Staff Congress (PSC) and the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT), the MOE bill was passed in June of this year by the New York Legislature to mandate the state to fund maintenance operations and to put the increase in tuition towards improving education.

According to Nash the reason for the collisions involvement is that the state is not paying as much as they used to pay and students are paying a lot more.

“That is most important to us that students are taking too much of the burden and the state should be taking more of the burden,” Nash said.

For the past four months, the bill has been waiting for the governor’s signature. Yet, it is not until Gov. Cuomo request to sign the bill that the MOE bill will be officially approved.

In an effort to get the bill on the top of the governor’s priority, UUP is promoting a SUNY-wide postcard campaign. Students will have the opportunity to fill out a postcard addressed to the governor. Student Association is partnering with Nash to encourage Oswego State to join the SUNY-wide postcard campaign.

“Our role I would say is just getting the students informed and giving the students the opportunity to get involved if they want to or not,” said SA Vice President Emily Nassir. “Students are the one who are paying their tuition and if we want to change that process and make it more effective and more efficient for students. Then as the students it is our responsibility to represent them that way and give them the opportunity to change the way their tuition is divvied out.”

According to Nash, it would be more meaningful and effective for students to fill out the postcards addressed to the governor.

“It is the students getting hurt when the bill is not getting signed so if students speak up and say ‘we need this signed’ then that is more meaningful then the collision is for the governor,” Nash said.

Postcards can be found in the Compass and are due back by Tuesday Nov. 3 at the SA senate meeting. The postcard are scheduled to be hand delivered to the governor’s office in the near future.