About 400 Fresno State students marched Wednesday in an organized protest against higher fees, class cuts and other reductions on campus.
Students banged drums, waved signs and chanted as they walked through Fresno State and along the campus border on Shaw and Cedar avenues. University police reported no problems with the march that lasted about 45 minutes.
Organizers said the protest -- which encouraged students to walk out of class -- succeeded in publicizing complaints about rising costs and reduced benefits.
"We got people's attention," said Mayra Miranda, a Fresno State student and representative of Students for Quality Education. The group helped lead the march and lobbied for the walkout using social networking sites, fliers and class presentations.
In a rally before the march, student and faculty speakers outlined the effects of budget cuts and urged support for state legislation that would provide money for higher education through a tax on oil and natural gas extraction.
Luis Sanchez blows on a conch shell to highlight a speech following a student walkout and march of hundreds of people at Fresno State on Wednesday. The walkout was organized by Students for Quality Education to protest fee hikes, class cuts, faculty layoffs, crowded classrooms and extended graduation dates.
Some students said they skipped classes to take part in the rally and march. Junior Evan Soenke, 23, of Fresno, said furloughs have prompted professors to cancel some of his class sessions.
"If they get to determine the days we don't go to school, we can too," he said.
Other students drifted into the post-march throng after class. Freshman Courtney People, 18, of Fresno, said she was sympathetic but "I couldn't afford not to go to class."
Some professors accommodated the walkout by posting assignments online or integrating the events into the curriculum. Elizabeth Swearingen, a nontenured faculty member in the women's studies program, compared the rally to a lab and said her students will write essays.
"I am holding class right now," Swearingen said during the rally. She noted that cutbacks are reducing her teaching load.
This year, the 23-campus California State University system has struggled to manage a budget shortfall of more than $560 million. Trustees twice raised undergraduate fees for 2009-10 --10% in May and another 20% in July.
Fresno State, along with other campuses, has slashed course sections, scheduled employee furloughs, trimmed enrollment and eliminated jobs.
Wednesday, the marchers aimed barbs at the state, CSU Chancellor Charles Reed and Fresno State President John Welty. Through a campus spokeswoman, Welty said he had no comment on student calls for him to resign.
Paul Oliaro, vice president for student affairs, watched the rally and said he understands student frustration. He also said that everyone must work together in pressing the state to provide more money for higher education.
In a statement issued late Wednesday afternoon, campus officials said Welty and Oliaro met with a delegation of students after the protest. Another meeting is scheduled for next month.
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