What happened: Commonwealth University-Bloomsburg participated in the ‘Red for Higher Ed’ event on March 4. This movement was seen on multiple campuses and consisted of students, faculty and staff wearing red in protest of the Trump administration’s plans for education.

“The Trump administration wants to make painful cuts to education and healthcare in order to slash taxes for billionaires. The administration’s plan to “block grant” federal education programs and gut the U.S. Department of Education would rob 26 million students living in poverty of critical services and 7.5 million students with disabilities of special education support. It would eliminate career and technical education for 12 million students, threatening their future job opportunities. Slashing Medicaid and student loans could strip healthcare coverage from 10.3 million people and end access to student loans, making college unaffordable for another 10 million working-class families,” says AFT ‘Protect Our Kids’, the initiative behind the movement

Bloomsburg’s Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF) chapter “hosted” the event. Bloomsburg APSCUF members, on top of wearing red, set up an information table for students to interact with.

“The purpose of having the CU community wear red and hosting the table was to try and educate everyone that the executive orders and actions of the Trump administration could have negative effects on Commonwealth University and our ability to serve our students,” said Bloomsburg’s APSCUF chapter president, Dr. Eric Hawrelak.

The table encouraged students to contact their senators and representatives to share their concerns with the state of higher education today.