Tampa, FL – On Sept. 22, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) announced the beginning of their campaign against a 15% tuition hike at the University of South Florida (USF). The students gathered outside the Marshall Student Center to kick off their campaign. Over the summer and then again in the fall, USF administrators hiked up tuition, increasing it from 8% up to 15%. Students are upset. As SDS member Dustin Ponder says, “This story is all too familiar across the nation. We in USF's SDS will not stand by and let such an injustice go unchallenged. In the past few weeks, SDS and other local activist organizations have been reaching out to the students of USF and are building support for an upcoming protest against attacks on our education.”
Gainesville, FL – Este otoño, grupos estudiantiles en Tallahassee, Pensacola, Gainesville, Tampa, y Orlando están haciendo mucho activismo y están ganando sus demandas, mientras que las clases se resumieron sólo hace unas semanas.
Gainesville, FL – 80 members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and their allies participated in a march here, Sept. 16, against annual tuition hikes planned by administrators at the University of Florida (UF). Administrators say they will raise tuition by 15% or more each year through 2019.
Gainesville, FL – On Sept 14, the University of Florida chapters of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) rallied together in favor of Palestine’s United Nation’s bid for statehood. About 30 students came together in Turlington Plaza to chant and hold signs supporting the Palestinian liberation struggle.
Gainesville, FL – The group Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) in Gainesville has a new reason to celebrate. On Sept. 6, student activists at the University of Florida (UF) defeated the block tuition system proposed by the administration and their Board of Trustees.
Tampa, FL – All across Florida this fall, student activists in are off to an amazing start. Groups in Tallahassee, Pensacola, Gainesville, Tampa and Orlando have blasted onto the scene with activism and victories, although universities and colleges started 2011-2012 classes only weeks ago.
Gainesville, FL – The Graduate Assistants Union (GAU) and allies from Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) rallied against student fees leveled upon graduate students at the University of Florida, Aug. 16. Volunteers began by leafleting and talking to teaching assistant employees about the importance of banding together and fighting for the union that provides them with healthcare and pay stipends. Many graduate students are surprised to learn that without the union, fees would go up every year like other campuses. Now the GAU union hopes to eliminate the fees, making graduate school more affordable for everyone. Most graduate student employees understand how poorly the administration treats them, despite teaching almost 50% of all undergraduate courses.
Washington, DC – More than 10,000 teachers and students assembled here, July 30, for the Save Our Schools Conference and March. The event was met with national media attention.