Colleagues —   What happens in the budget process in Albany this week will determine much of the fate of our university, and of our John Jay College.  The time to advocate is NOW!  Any one who attended our Chapter meeting a week ago learned from Paul Narkunas and Susan Kang — from our JJay Chapter EC, and from Jen Gaboury — Chair of the Hunter College Chapter and member of the PSC Legislation committee — how crucial the budget deliberations this year are for the future of CUNY and the possibility of a New Deal for CUNY.  Slides.   Right now, you should know about the virtual meetings that you and your students could all join — many of them in the next 72 hours — to help this university get the support our students and we really need.

Check the list below of state electeds and do what you can; think also of your friends and how to get them involved.  Then go down to the “10 Valuable things You Can Do,” below the list of electeds.  The very first thing on the list you can do in 10 minutes and it really might make the difference.

Here is the link of why we think you want the New Deal 4 CUNY what it is, AND what you can do.  We need an email storm from you and your friends.

Do you live in one of these districts (see appointments below) or are you willing to join an appt or two? We’re signed up to meet with these reps as they are important targets — it matters to leadership that we’ve brought folks on from Long Island and Westchester, for example.  There are links to RSVP below.   If your rep isn’t here, you’re interested in mtg with them, and they haven’t yet signed on to cosponsored a New Deal for CUNY – let Jen Gaboury know!  You can reach her at jennifer.gaboury@gmail.com. Thanks!    Here’s where you can see if your Assemblymember has signed on.

Don’t know your rep? FInd your legislator.

I’ve left on this list the appts that just happened — if you live in one of those districts, this is a key person. Email or call them!

ADVOCATE FOR A NEW DEAL FOR CUNY and FUNDING IN NEXT YEAR’S BUDGET

We are currently asking NYS legislators to: 1. sign on to cosponsor a New Deal for CUNY if they have not and 2. to push for an additional $273.6 million in funding than what Gov Cuomo allocated in his Executive Budget

Bronx/Westchester: 

Assembly District 81 – Jeffrey Dinowitz, Wednesday March 10th, 9 am (RSVP)  West Bronx – Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Van Cortlandt Village

Brooklyn:   

Assembly District 47 – William Colton   Monday March 8th, 3 pm (RSVP)    Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, Dyker Heights

Assembly District 43 – Diana C. Richardson    Wednesday March 10th, 4:30 pm (RSVP)  Crown Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens, East Flatbush

Senate District 23 – Diane Savino  Thursday March 11th, 3 pm (RSVP)   Brighton Beach, Coney Island, Bath Beach, Gravesend, Leif Ericson Park, Sunset Park

Long Island:

Senate District 5 – Jim Gaughran   Wednesday March 10th, 12 pm (RSVP)   North Shore – Huntington, Syosset, Glen Cove, Melville, Plainview, Northport

Senate District 8 – John Brooks   Wednesday March 10th, 1 pm (RSVP)    South Shore – Wantagh, Amityville, Freeport, Merrick, Roosevelt

Assembly District 4 – Steve Englebright   Wednesday March 10th, 4 pm (RSVP)   North Shore – Port Jefferson, Stony Brook, Setauket, Coram

Assembly District 21 – Judy Griffin  Thursday March 11th, 11 am (RSVP)   Rockville Centre, Lynbrook, South Hempstead, Malverne, Baldwin

Assembly District 13 – Charles Lavine  Thursday March 11th, 2 pm (RSVP)  Roslyn, Glen Cove, Bayville, Woodbury, Plainview, Jericho, Westbury

Manhattan:

Assembly District 73 – Dan Quart  Friday March 12th, 3 pm (RSVP)  Murray Hill, Midtown East, Upper East Side

Staten Island:

Assembly District 62 – Michael Reilly  Tuesday March 9th, 12 pm (RSVP)  South Shore, Richmond, Egbertville

Assembly District 63 – Michael Cusick  Wednesday March 10th, 2 pm (RSVP)  West Shore, Castleton Corners, Todt Hill, Silver Lake

Senate District 23 – Diane Savino  Thursday March 11th, 3 pm (RSVP)  North Shore – Mariners Harbor, Elm Park, St. George, Stapleton, Clifton, Arrochar

 

Here are 10 Valuable Things You Can Do to support this campaign, and as long as you are not lobbying for particular candidates, it is okay to tell your students:

1. Click here to send an email to your NYS state legislator – you’re encouraged to personalize it, adding on what a ND4C and more funding right now would mean for us.
2. Craft your own personalized letter and mail it!
3. Sign up to pressure your reps! These meetings and actions have started!
4. Come to a CUNY Rising Alliance march on Saturday March 6^th at 1pm, we’ll be starting at Barclay’s Center and ending at City Tech! https://cunyrisingalliance.org/march6
5. Come to the ND4C organizing mtgs every other Monday 2:30 to 4pm until the April 1^st budget deadline (that’s just March 15, & 29). Invite others! If interested, email us at HunterChapterPSCCUNY@gmail.com
6. If you’re up for hustling (sending text messages) to get other members to take action, let us know! email us at HunterChapterPSCCUNY@gmail.com
7. Post on social media about a New Deal for CUNY. Tag your reps. Ask them to cosponsor the bill, support an additional 273.6 million than what’s currently in the Executive Budget. Use hashtags #NewDealforCUNY and #CUNY; you might use #InvestinourNewYork if want to support the campaign for increased revenue. You can retweet from @CUNYRising. Want to look up your representatives?  Want to learn more about the revenue campaign?
8. Reach out to alum, former and current students and share the links above re emailing and signing up to meet with their reps. Ask them to help us make ND4C visible on social media! An external petition for alum and former students is coming soon.
9. CUNY Rising postcard parties Wed March 3 6-7pm and 9-10pm: BYO beverage, blank postcards, postage, and art supplies then log onto zoom, and urge NYS reps to support a ND4C. We’ll help w/ suggested language and assist you in looking up the addresses. Email CRAbizness@gmail.com for info and link to join. Facebook invite
10. Share all of this with others. Everybody you know could be a #CUNYally

Who are your reps?