The general requirement for admission to The City University of New York is a high

school diploma or a New York State GED or its equivalent. For admission to the senior colleges

and to four-year degree programs, the high school academic average, the number of academic

courses taken, and SAT/ACT scores are considered. For students currently in high school, an official high school transcript must be submitted. For applicants who have already graduated from high school, an official high school transcript and proof of graduation (diploma) must be submitted.

For applicant who hold a GED, a copy of the GED score and official transcripts from any

high schools attended must be submitted. For those who are applying to certain specialized programs, such as early admission (high school juniors) or performing arts, call for additional criteria such as auditions, special tests, direct applications, etc. Those applicants who have attended or are currently attending a college, university, or other post-secondary education program and want to attend CUNY, are considered transfer students. The application and process for transfer students are different from those for freshmen. Transfer applicants should request the Transfer Admissions Guide.

The College recommends four years of English, four years of social studies, three years of

mathematics, two years of foreign language, two years of laboratory sciences, and one year of

performing or visual arts as the academic preparation needed for success in college. The debate about putting an end to open admissions and the introduction of entrance exams began a few years ago. The open admissions program was adopted in 1970. It allowed any student with a high school average of 80 or more to enter one of the university’s four-year colleges. Students with an average of 70 were allowed to enter the two-year community colleges. Gov. George Pataki and Mayor Rudolph Giuliani criticize CUNY for spending too much on remedial classes, they also criticize CUNY for low standards, they say that too few of the students graduate. But the New York Times reports that the study shows that those students that entered CUNY under open admission program, more than half of them received bachelor’s degrees. "Our data indicate that it provided opportunities that students used well and that translated into direct benefits in the job market and clearly augmented the economic base", said Professor Lavin, who has been studying the effect of open admissions since the program began in 1970.

Regarding the remedial classes that mayor wants to end, they are not as costly as he

thinks. According to the Times, ending remedial classes would not only reduce the colleges’ total

budget, it would also reduce money available for more expensive courses like nursing and

science. Students who take them pay the same tuition as other students and colleges receive the

same government aid for these students as for others. "The remedial courses help offset our

higher-cost programs," Dr. Kurt Schmeller, president of Queensborough Community College, told

a CUNY trustee committee. According to the research, tuition for local students is $2.500 a year

and colleges get $1.900 a year in state aid for each student. Under the state law, if colleges do not

have open admission program, that aid would be cut by $400 per student.

So, what do people like you and me think about CUNY and open admission program. Well,

according to the Quinnipiac College Poll conducted by Manrice Carroll, 65 percent of New

Yorkers say that the education provided by CUNY is very good or fairly good, while 11 percent say it is fairly bad or very bad, 24 percent say it is getting better, while 19 percent say it is getting

worse and 37 percent it is unchanged. 50-28 percent would recommend CUNY to a relative or a friend. 65 percent support CUNY’s open admissions program. By a 65-29 percent margin, they say that CUNY should be tuition free. "People are not persuaded by the bad headlined about CUNY. They admire the university. In fact, they’d retain open admissions and restore free tuition", said Carroll. "The question is , do you want to help people succeed? If so, you have to help. Of course, since resources are finite and you don’t want to deprive others, you don’t want to have students who

hang around forever. The question is whether you keep open your doors", said C. Peter Magrath,

president of the National Association of State Universities and land-grant Colleges.

How have public interest groups effected the opinions and decisions made by the previously mentioned people? In today's political system, interest groups have gained political power and influence over legislation. Some call this a pluralist system of democracy. Every group that has a particular interest can form a lobby intended to influence legislation. This does not always have to occur on the national level. Here in CUNY the students and faculty make up a very powerful interest group. Their interest is in the quality of education as well as the ability of everyone to receive it. Recently, New York's mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, has made plans to cut the City University of New York's budget and end open enrollment. Open enrollment was instituted in 1970 to afford New York public school students the opportunity to attend college. This policy has recently come under scrutiny from the mayor. Giuliani feels that the remedial courses offered to those student who do not pass the entrance exams should be ended or reconstructed and the budget along with it. This has caused many students to get actively involved with the political system. Through the use of public gatherings, the press, and active lobbying, students have made themselves heard. Although many of these students do not posses much wealth they can have an influence on policies. A New York Times article explains just how much influence an interest group can have. "On Friday, the board had postponed a previously scheduled vote on a comprehensive plan for cutting remediation at all 17 undergraduate colleges, following a week of sharp criticism from students, teachers and government officials," (New York Time 3/11). The article goes on to explain that a group of about 150 protesters marched outside of CUNY’s headquarters. The group consisted of students, faculty members, and students from other colleges and universities. The mayor's plan would cut Hunter's enrollment by an estimated 75%. These students, for whom the program was initiated are taking action. On March 4, the board of trustees met to vote on the new plan. Students sat outside the door and some even entered the meeting. Do to the public opposition of the students, the board put off the vote. The question of whether these students really have the power to stop the mayor's proposal is yet to be seen. The cuts may still happen, but because of their action, other plans have been offered and a compromise may be reached. In this instance, public interest groups gained access to the government and were able to affect their actions.

One thing that must be looked at, is who’s interests are involved and why. Many support the cuts to remedial classes, students, the mayor, and faculty. There are those that feel that limiting access to city colleges will entirely stop students who need the classes most from receiving a college education. A major motivating factor in the decision to cut the classes was money. The original announcement of the cuts to CUNY dealt with the money that was spent on remedial classes. A study done by Richard F. Rothbard, vice chancellor for budget, finance and information services, shows estimations of $80 million dollars in tuition revenue that CUNY could lose in just the first year alone (New York Times 3/31). "At the community colleges, about 10,900 freshman take remedial courses, and tuition for full time resident students in $2,500, while average tuition revenues amount to $2,700. CUNY also gets an additional $1,900 in aid for each student enrolled at the community colleges, bringing the total revenues from remedial students to about $50 million, Mr. Rothbard said" (New York Times 3/31). The CUNY system as well as the students have a high stake in keeping the remedial classes. A high school student, Chenaye Mcfadden, was quoted in the New York Times on March 27, 1998 as saying, "It is sad because a lot of friends of mine who are juniors and seniors don’t have the grades to go to other colleges." The effects of the plan by the mayor is very far reaching.

What is the mayor’s role in this?

Many people look towards a central figure or chief executive to place blame or praise for a particular piece of legislation or budget decision. In New York City that person is mayor Rudy Giuliani. He is the executive for the local area. For the purpose of this paper we will assume that he is the executive in charge of legislation and budgets involving Manhattan. In an article taken from the internet site, Workers World News Service, it said, "New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani declared war on the City University of New York and public higher education when he presented his city budget proposal Jan. 29." The author of the article, G. Dunkel, criticizes the mayor saying he would deny the education, credentials and skills they need for a decent job to 60,000 of CUNY’s 80,000 thousand community-college students. "News commentators say Giuliani’s proposals are designed to thrust himself onto the national political stage as a tough administrator moving to crack down on the poor. These specific proposals culminate a four-year campaign to discredit CUNY, cut its budget, belittle its accomplishments and break up a resource that working-class New Yorkers know has proved essential hundreds of thousands of students" (WWNS Feb. 12). This article, although not impartial, shows that the motives of the executive in this case may not be in the best interest of those he was elected to serve. In our system of government today, we elect public officials to represent our wishes and interests. If what this article brings to light is true, 60,000 of the 80,000 students attending community colleges in New York city will no longer have the proper training to obtain jobs then it can be said that the mayor is not providing for his constituents. Does the mayor have the power to do what he wants in order to further his political career? Certainly all of his decisions are politically driven, but for what purpose? Who should he be serving, the people or himself? Many think that people in power, the mayor, president or governor do abuse their power to benefit themselves. Government, under the framers, was designed for two purposes, to limit the power of one person and to limit the involvement of the mass majority. Until the story recently hit the news I did not know that CUNY or Hunter had an "open admissions" policy. The framers wanted to protect against the ignorance of people like me. A good question to ask would be why the mayor introduced the budget cuts in the way that he did. Mayor Giuliani was very proud of the power he was exerting to create a better education for the state. While doing so, he upset a great number of people. Was it a political gamble that he thought in the end would make more people happy then angry. That is a very possible scenario. There are many people who understand and agree that the current state of the universities in the system is a bad one. In a New York Times article dated, Sunday, March 29, 1998, Mayor Giuliani was quoted as saying, "CUNY must make sure that all students learn about math, science, history, and many other core subjects before granting them diplomas." On the surface, this seems like a logical and sensible statement. Those students who do graduate but are not adequately prepared will not find jobs anyway. If students graduate and are unprepared to deal with day to day education that the nation accepts as substantial then CUNY is doing them a disservice. Looking below what the mayor says, one finds that he is just trying to justify his cutting of the budget. Although the mayor claims that studies of students attending community college through this program do not receive degrees or they receive degrees that are not substantial because they do not meet certain standards, not everyone agrees. In an article written by Karen W. Arenson of the New York Times she describes a study done by David E. Lavin and David Hyllegard that refutes the statements made by Giuliani. "The study, which surveyed students who entered the City University under the open admissions policy, found that more than half received bachelor’s degrees, sometimes a more than a decade later, and they went on to better paying jobs as a result." This directly opposes what the mayor claims to be the major problem within the school system. Numbers can be made to tell many different stories, they can be turned around to benefit anyone using them. It is, however, impossible to ignore that many of the students who attend the City University work full time as well as attend college. This, in turn, makes their time of graduation much longer. In the eyes of the mayor this is unacceptable, but the people in question are fulfilling one of his major objectives, cutting down on the poor. Many of these students are working and going to school, how can they be adding to the problem. If the problem exists solely in the curriculum and the standards of the system then that should be addressed. The mayor has said that he intends to cut these classes out in order to restore respectability to the system. However in doing so he is creating a problem that he set out to get rid of, the poor. Without a proper education, these students cannot apply for jobs. The main question comes back to whether the mayor has the right to deny these students the right to higher education.

Nowhere in the constitution or the bill of rights, does it provide for the right to education specifically. What the constitution does provide for, is the right to freedom to pursue happiness. Many would agree that in today’s society, it is imperative to have a college degree to receive a well paying job. Along with the high paying job comes a better standard of living and therefore happiness. There are other questions that exist as well. The open admission policy only applies to those students who have graduated from the New York public school system. Perhaps we should be looking at the education these students receive before entering college. In Brown v. The Board of Education, the Supreme Court ruled that separate but equal was unequal and damaging to the psyche of people. Is the New York public school system separate? No, not in the way or race or ethnicity in Brown v the Board of ED but perhaps in socioeconomic status. Many of these schools do not have the funds or teachers to provide the students with the tools they need to succeed in college. So, according to civil rights and liberties, maybe people’s freedoms are being infringed upon by the mayor’s cutbacks. We should also ask ourselves if the mayor of New York City and it’s bureaucracy has the right to dictate what level of education is acceptable. For many years, education was left up to the states. In the previous court decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the National Government had a right to step in and regulate it. At different times state school boards have been taken over because of failure to meet minimum requirement. This happened in Patterson New Jersey with East Side High School. The mayor has neither shown nor proven that the City University system is not providing a proper education. In his personal opinion the standards are lower than they should be, but that does not make them "too low". Many students are fighting the budget cut backs for different reasons than the mayor is trying to implement them. That does not change the fact that the students are given a chance to speak out against it and protect their rights against a single person making a decision for many. The mayor may have the power to legislate, but it is still uncertain whether he is infringing on people’s right to education.

Arenson, Karen W. "Study Details CUNY Successes from Open-Admissions Policy."

Reprinted from The New York Times 7 May, 1996

Arenson, Karen W. "CUNY Proposes Stricter Rules on Students in Remedial Classes."

The New York Times 1 March 1998: A1

Arenson, Karen W. "CUNY Board Fails to Approve Bid to Allow Remedial Cuts."

The New York Times 16 March 1998: C2

Arenson, Karen W. "CUNY Sees Financial Losses in Limiting Remedial Classes."

The New York Times 31 March 1998: B8

Dunkel, G. "New York Mayor Declares Ware on CUNY." Reprinted from Workers World Newspaper 12 Feb. 1998

Quinnipiac College Poll, Rubenstein Associates, Inc., Public Relations Tel: (212) 843-8026

The New York Times, nytimes.com