Wade Manns – The Corsair
Twenty-one PJC Student Government Association leaders joined 325 other community college student leaders from across the state April 7-8 to lobby legislators on bills currently being considered. The annual Rally in Tally, staged by the Florida Junior/Community College Student Government Association, included a rally on the steps of the old capitol building as well as individual meetings with legislators in their districts.
The Pensacola group met with District 2 Rep. Dave Murzin, District 3 Rep. Clay Ford, and District 4 Sen. Don Gaetz. Before the meetings, students were taken on a tour of the new Capitol building, including gallery views of the House of Representatives and the Senate as well as the office of Gov. Charlie Crist, led by PJC Executive Director of Government Relations Larry Bracken.
“I believe that we made an impact on the legislators because they saw a group of college students that have a strong passion for our schools and who care enough to all gather together to fight for what we believe in,” said PJC representative Cody Ray Engle.
The state group lobbied legislators on several issues, according to PJC SGA representative Tremayne Burnett, including: textbook affordability; legislation that would allow undocumented students the right to claim residency for tuition purposes; and no more changes or reductions to Bright Futures, or to the state college system budget.
Burnett said, “We wanted to make the incentive here to afford those foreign students the same opportunity that we have to get an education. This is America. At some point in time we were all foreigners.”
At the Rally, the state group welcomed Ocala native, 24th District Representative Kurt Kelly, who began the Rally with a speech: “I am now looking into the eyes of leaders. No, not just future leaders, but leaders. You are leaders of people, already… the leaders of the House that are coming up the next couple of years were all presidents of their respective schools… Many of them were involved in student government; they understand what it takes to be a great leader… kindness.”
This was not only an educational opportunity for the students involved, allowing them to get an inside view on politics as it affects them, but was also a great social opportunity, culminating in the awards banquet and a late-night dance party afterwards.
“Being able to come together with other people that believe in the same things as me and fight for what is right made it so much better,” Engle said.