The New York Public Interest Research Group joined 21 other campuses across New York State in an attempt to flood the telephone lines of top officials in Albany.
Adam Waitzman, a senior history major, stood outside the Commons on Tuesday, amid gusts of wind, urging students to phone the capital and tell legislators what they think of Gov. George E. Pataki's proposed $1,200 tuition hike and cuts to financial aid programs.
"There were a lot of people who were very excited to give the governor a piece of their mind," Waitzman said, "and a lot of people still, for some reason, were not aware (of) what's going on."
The event was part of a statewide call-in program, where between 4,000 and 5,000 students phoned Albany.
All the calls were placed via Waitzman's cellular phone; Waitzman said he was not upset at footing the bill for the 30 or 35 calls placed in the two-hour period. The event was scheduled to run for four hours but was cut short due to inclement weather.
According to Waitzman, UB's chapter of NYPIRG recently began planning the event and is planning to hold a larger call-in day in the near future.
"It's something that NYPIRG state-wide has planned for a while, but it wasn't something that we at UB decided to endeavor until the past week and a half," he said.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
