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Welcome to USSA!

by admin last modified August 25, 2010 17:54

The United States Student Association, the country’s oldest and largest student-led organization, represents over 4.5 million students at over 400 campuses across the nation. We work to develop current and future leaders and amplify the student voice at the local, state, and national levels by mobilizing grassroots power to win concrete victories on student issues.



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The Student Scoop:  USSA's Blog

blog

Dear DEA, WTHeck is an Ebonic Translator? - August 25, 2010

By Tiffany Loftin, USSA National People of Color Student Coalition Chair

It has come to my attention that the DEA has been contacting translation companies to find 9 professional ebonic translators. Apparently the DEA is having trouble understanding drug dealers when they tap into their phone calls?

H. Samy Alim, a Stanford linguistics professor who specializes in black language and hip-hop culture, said he thought the hiring effort was a joke when he first heard about it, but that it highlights a serious issue.

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Students are Voting Again to Build a Movement - August 25, 2010

studentsvote logoBy Lindsay McCluskey, USSA President

Students are voting again in 2010 because we're building a movement. This movement did not begin with the 2008 vote campaign and it certainly did not end with the election of Barack Obama. It is a movement to make education a right and has been a driving force behind social progress for decades. We are fortunate enough to be organizing in a time of great opportunity and have capitalized on the leadership of President Obama and members of Congress. The passage of student financial aid reform, the biggest investment in higher education since the GI bill, is a testament to this. However, we are simply passing through one era of this movement and have a responsibility as organizers to build upon past victories. We are voting again, not just to elect members of Congress who will champion higher education causes, but also to construct a more perfect framework of student activism that will lead to students winning on issues directly affecting young people.

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StudentsVOTE! 2010 Launched! - August 23, 2010

Today, USSA launched the StudentsVOTE! 2010 website! Click here to see how you can be a part of the grassroots movement to elect a Congress that will fight for college access and affordability!


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Vigilance in the Higher Ed Community - August 16, 2010

crushing student debtBy Lindsay McCluskey, USSA President & Victor Sanchez, USSA VP

President Obama has set a noble goal of having the United States lead the world in college graduation rates by 2020.  It is an aim that will empower individuals and strengthen the country as a whole, but it certainly won't be easy.  Our current graduation rates are far behind our international competitors and we will be hard pressed to meet our own college-educated workforce capacity by the end of the decade.  However, a united education community that invests in college access, degree quality, and workforce readiness will no doubt succeed in this effort.  It will take us all, public and private four-year institutions, community and technical colleges, trade schools, and for-profit career colleges to once again place the United States paramount in education.

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A Bittersweet Victory - August 10, 2010

March in front of capitalToday, the House of Representatives passed HR 1586 with a $26 billion state aid amendment that funds teacher jobs and state Medicaid spending.  The legislation, which passed the Senate by a vote of 61-38 on August 8, spends $10 billion on saving an estimated 140,000 K-12 education jobs.  Additionally, states will only receive said funding if they maintain higher education spending levels from fiscal year 2009.  Particularly cash-strapped states will be allowed to maintain spending levels from fiscal year 2006. 

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Students in Need of Action and Vision - August 10, 2010

Obama It read “Students Over Banks.” The headline on the Obama Administration’s website simply defined a priority the president has long chided as one of the utmost important to this country’s future. Regardless, for students, the situation at our colleges and universities across the country has long been untenable.

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USSA Stands in Solidarity with AFL-CIO on DREAM Act - August 9, 2010

DREAM Act marchThe United States Student Association (USSA), the nation’s oldest and largest student organization, applauds the AFL-CIO for its decision to call on Congress to pass the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act as a down payment on comprehensive immigration reform.

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Students set new Tone, Leadership for the Student Movement - July 29, 2010

fist pumpNearly 200 college student organizers and leaders assembled at the University of California, Los Angeles last week for the United States Student Association’s (USSA) 63rd annual National Student Congress.  Members of the nation’s oldest, largest, and most inclusive student organization met to elect the 2010 – 2011 USSA President and Vice President, Board of Directors, and pass the national agenda for students.

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Students Respond to Financial Reform Legislation - July 28, 2010

bailoutThe financial collapse of 2008 had rippling effects across America, including on college students. Young people, who were already victim to decades of higher education divestment, saw higher education budgets slashed by state legislatures and tuition and fees soar.  With these higher costs and dwindling financial aid, student debt has risen to nearly $25,000 for the average borrower.   The federal government took steps to mitigate these financial burdens by passing historic student aid reform last spring, ushering in a new era of federal investment in college students.  Private lenders, however, still needed strengthened regulation.

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Students Call for Passage of Financial Reform in the Senate - July 7, 2010

Finance reformThe United States Student Association (USSA), representing over four million college and university students nationwide, applauds Senator Chris Dodd, Representative Barney Frank, and all those who having worked diligently on the historic Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.  Members of Congress have recognized the importance of including regulation over private loans, the ‘wild west’ of student lending, in their efforts to stabilize the nation’s financial framework.

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Students Respond to Pres. Obama's Immigration Reform Speech with a Call to Pass the DREAM Act - July 2, 2010

Obama speech reaction"We can be a nation of laws and immigrations," declared President Obama at yesterday’s immigration reform speech.  He spoke of America attracting the best and the brightest from across the globe and the moral imperative to fix our broken immigration system.  While the numerous issues hindering immigration reform were eloquently outlined, the president’s speech lacked an action plan for enacting reform legislation.  The conspicuous absence of a legislative strategy was disappointing, and the reality is setting in that comprehensive immigration reform will most likely not happen this summer.

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Is College only for the Rich? - June 30, 2010

College only for the richChief among America's most revered ideals is that an education can propel anyone from the depths of destitution to the skies of achievement. This, along with socioeconomic reason, is why President Obama boldly announced in his first State of the Union address that the United States would once again lead the world in college graduation rates by 2020. Only three months later, the president took a major step forward in meeting this goal by signing historic student aid reform into law, investing about $40 billion in need-based federal financial aid over the next decade. The Georgetown Center for Education and Workforce recently concluded that the president's goal will require about $110 billion more from state governments, an unlikely feet considering over 30 states are implementing higher education budget cuts next fiscal year.

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