College of the Desert in Palm Desert, California may cut as m any as 350 classes and hike prices on English course programs for non-native speakers in an effort to close a $1.8 million budget hole.
The college board approved a plan that would increase the cost of lower level "English as a Second Language" classes from $15 to $108 per course. With the new plan, the noncredit classes would be paid for solely with student fees and federal money and not impact the school's general fund. This would affect about 800 students who are currently taking these classes. In response to the proposals, students staged a silent protest outside of the school's board of trustees meeting on April 15. They held signs that read "Give me a chance to be someone", "Help me be a nurse", and "Help me transfer to UCLA."