Issue date: 4/25/07 Section: Opinion

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There's no parking, my books are too expensive and I can't afford my tuition. My professors are upset that their contracts are not being negotiated well.

OK, so who should my finger be pointed at? I know it's easy to place blame on whoever is in charge, but shouldn't we take the time to look at the situation in its entirety and determine the real cause of the problem?

With the current campus climate, a no-confidence referendum and outraged faculty members, a number of students are confused about which side they should be on. Should we support our president in his darkest days or should we stick behind our professors and fight for their rights?

Is President Alexander Gonzalez really that bad? Are the faculty's arguments and demands really substantial? Let's look at the major claims and focus on each side to determine what we, as students, should really be concerned with.

After looking into the subject, I am convinced that all of the major issues in the no-confidence referendum and Gonzalez's response letter affect Sacramento State students, either directly or indirectly.

Gonzalez's response letter included claims made by the faculty and his own personal responses.  A major claim that has been made by the faculty is that over the course of Gonzalez's term as the president of Sac State, "The budget allocations for Academic Affairs have been systematically reduced by a total of $3 million; while over the same period of time, budgets to other divisions have been substantially increased."

Gonzalez said that, contrary to the Faculty Senate's claims, the money allocated for Academic Affairs has actually increased over the past three years.  He said that since 2004, he has "worked systematically and diligently to restore and strengthen Academic Affairs."

Gonzalez also said that if the contract with the faculty is ratified the Academic Affairs' budget will increase by $2.8 million to cover the 2006-07 raises, which means there will be a substantial net increase to the budget.

By these numbers, it's hard to argue against Gonzalez. After all, the faculty is claiming that money should be targeted toward Academic Affairs.

It looks to me that it is. Gonzalez one, faculty zero.

By improving Academic Affairs and the faculty's attitude and ill image towards him, Gonzalez can begin to piece together his broken career.

I understand that, as president, he should be trying to keep everyone happy and look at both points of view, but when his faculty is outraged, I believe that the first step of action would be to make them satisfied. Without them, the school wouldn't run properly.

Gonzalez has said that he understands the faculty and where it's coming from. Gonzalez said that he came from the faculty and knows what it is to be a member of the CSU. Still, I don't see his remorse doing any good.

Gonzalez one, faculty one.

The faculty had a number of other issues to take up with the president, including his trademark visions and trying to improve the image of the school instead of focusing on the university's programs and classes.

Gonzalez said that "students come to universities for many, varied reasons," and that improving the visibility of the school will "attract community support." He said that Destination 2010 is focusing on increasing the amount of support, funding, direction and quality of the university.

That being said, the only thing I have seen Destination 2010 accomplish so far is a new parking structure. Joy!  I'm not sure which students Gonzalez has been asking, but my main concern is not how pretty and attractive the campus could look. The most important aspect is our education and how we can improve and add to the programs we currently have on campus.

I agree with Gonzalez that showing our community what we have to offer is important, but not being prepared and showing them half-finished work is unacceptable. I believe Gonzalez is looking too far into the future and not concentrating on the current issues that are staring him dead in the face.

Instead of putting money into changing the school's name, fixing signs, developing local advertisements, which, by the way, make the school sound like a joke and many other useless things, why not, put the money toward funding new programs, helping on-campus student organizations  or improving material for classrooms? Or here's a thought, why not sprinkle it among the teachers and put a few extra dollars in their wallets? Current standing: Gonzalez one, faculty two.

Gonzalez is an easy target. He's the president of the school and he gets blamed for things he has no control over, such as book prices or tuition.

The California State University Board of Trustees recently passed a 10 percent increase in student fees for this fall. Gonzalez doesn't control this aspect. Still, there are many issues that he does have control over that need to be resolved. The faculty is not happy and the students are not amused. If the faculty isn't satisfied, then it will not support any resolutions or plans the president makes and neither will the students.

Rosa Pastran can be reached at opinion@statehornet.com

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