August 22, 2010

Public Colleges, a Historic Strength of the Pacific West, Are Weakened

Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

Protesters at the U. of California at Berkeley marched across campus in March during a "national day of action" in which students walked out of classes to oppose university-funding cuts and tuition increases.

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Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

Protesters at the U. of California at Berkeley marched across campus in March during a "national day of action" in which students walked out of classes to oppose university-funding cuts and tuition increases.

By Josh Keller

For a moment, it seemed like 1964. Students occupied buildings in Berkeley, clashed with police, and got arrested. A wave of student protests brought the decline of public colleges in the Pacific West onto the national stage.

But the attention did nothing to change the stubborn dynamic of 2010: large budget deficits and an unwillingness to raise taxes that might shield cuts to higher education. In the last few years, universities in California, Hawaii, and Oregon have lost about