Students gathered April 9 in the Student Union to protest SUNY budget cuts that organizers say could raise tuition by as much as $2,300. The gathering was organized by the new Student Association leaders, among others.

Speakers, who included Jean Dickson of United University Professions, Judy Francois of UB's Educational Opportunity Program Student Association, and Mark Frankel of the Graduate Student Association, urged students and others in the university community to work together to fight the proposed cuts to SUNY.

Following the campus rally, students boarded two SA-sponsored buses to State Sen. Mary Lou Rath's Williamsville office, where they continued the protest.

Afterward, students returned to Capen Hall, where they attempted to enter President Greiner's Capen Hall office to protest support of campus-based tuition. They were met by Robert Palmer, vice president for Student Affairs, who attempted to prevent students from entering the president's office. Greiner was not in his office at the time.

Students also gathered Wednesday night at Samuel's Grande Manor in Clarence, where Gov. Pataki attended the Amherst Chamber of Commerce dinner and UB was honored for its work on the Governance Project. As Pataki left, groups of students marched in the restaurant's entrance, briefly blocking the governor's departure before they were pushed back.

The demonstrations come in the wake of a recent Buffalo News report that four UB students were arrested for trespass March 7 following a protest outside the Williamsville office of Congressman Bill Paxon. The students were arrested and handcuffed after they allegedly walked through the building's parking lot following a rally protesting Paxon's voting record against the direct student loan program.