I recently wrote a piece on UC Santa Cruz and some of their questionable curricula. Shortly thereafter (and coincidentally in my opinion), the university announced plans to cut back on the Community Studies Department department if not eliminate it altogether. That sparked a firestorm of protest. In reporting the story, the Santa Cruz Sentinel listed David Horowitz and myself as conservative pundits who had mocked the program.
The Santa Cruz Sentinel has published a piece dated April 19, 2009 by UCSC graduate Tony Newman that defends the program. In the spirit of being fair and balanced, I am posting Mr Newman's article.
Tony Newman: A UC Santa Cruz Community Studies success story-
Posted: 04/12/2009 01:30:25 AM PDT
Tony Newman
"I am very grateful to have a job I love, especially in these scary and uncertain economic times. For the last nine years I have been the director of media relations for the Drug Policy Alliance, a national nonprofit that is working to end the failed war on drugs and replace it with a more sensible and compassionate approach to national drug policy.
There is no doubt that the Community Studies program at UC Santa Cruz is the reason I am doing what I do today. When my dad e-mailed me a story from the Santa Cruz Sentinel about the possibility of UCSC shutting down the Community Studies program because of budget cuts, I thought I should share my experience and appreciation for a program that has deeply impacted my life.
I moved to Santa Cruz from Echo Park, Los Angeles, when I was 14. I loved my high school years at Santa Cruz High. My happiest memories of high school are spending time in the quad with the surfers, and the beautiful days and evenings on the cliffs. Those were carefree and blissful years. When it came time to apply for college I only chose two schools: Cabrillo and UCSC. I knew I didn't want to leave the city I loved.
I was accepted into UCSC, and during my sophomore year the first Gulf War broke out in Iraq. The war sparked my political consciousness, and in 1991 I co-founded a group called Santa Cruz Students for Social Responsibility that organized anti-war demonstrations with thousands of students. When it came time to choose a major that year, I decided to look into Community Studies, a program that requires students to get out of the classroom and get some real-life experience. After reading numerous books and attending many lectures about activism and social movements, I was hungry to dive into the real world and work for the issues I cared about.
I did my six-month internship at the human rights group, Global Exchange, based in San Francisco. During my internship, I was introduced to organizing and activism that you just can't get from a classroom. As an intern I sat in engaging and strategic meetings, organized major events, and eventually learned how to do public relations, a skill set that I have been using ever since. Afterwards, I returned to UCSC and wrote a thesis on my experience of bringing supplies to Cuba and challenging U.S. foreign policy through high profile civil disobedience.
When I graduated from Community Studies, Global Exchange hired me and I ended up being their media director for six years. During my years at Global Exchange I honed my PR skills and publicized several high-profile campaigns, including the fight against Nike's sweatshops in Asia.
UCSC's Community Studies Department introduced me to the world of nonprofit organizations, taught me invaluable skills, and helped to launch my career. Because of Community Studies I have a fulfilling professional life that is driven by my values: my work makes a difference in the world while allowing me to put food on the table and support my family.
Community Studies benefits the individual student, the Santa Cruz community, and the larger world. It introduces students to issues and organizations that provide valuable experience and life-long connections. It builds a much-needed bridge between students and the Santa Cruz community by providing volunteers to local service organizations. And it sends passionate and committed people into the world to work on issues of local, national, and international importance.
It would be a serious loss for Santa Cruz, and for the greater world, if UCSC cuts the Community Studies program. There must be another way to save a few dollars."
Tony Newman graduated from Santa Cruz High and UC Santa Cruz. He lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., and is the director of media relations at the Drug Policy Alliance.
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