#SaveOurStudentHealthServices - CCNY

The City College of New York claims it's devoted to "access and excellence." Yet, during the worst global health crisis of our lifetime, our Student Health Services (SHS) is devastatingly underfunded and understaffed. After last year's budget cuts, SHS was forced to let go of its part-time employees and is left with only one staff nurse. Making matters worse, SHS is funded by a small portion of our ~$65 Student Activity Fee (SAF), leaving it without the proper stabilized funding from neither the college nor CUNY. With an inability to provide the necessary resources and outreach to students, this budgetary issue is an annual cycle that makes it virtually impossible for SHS to ever properly serve its purpose. We know that now more than ever, students urgently need physical, mental, and emotional support to perform their best academically.

Change can only happen quickly if students come together. Our health should matter to the school. We take pride in being the flagship college of the nation's largest public urban university. But, our reality is far from congruent with this facade. We have an opportunity to finally change the way we see and use our campus resources to better ourselves and future generations of CCNY students.

By signing this petition, we call on the administration at The City College of New York and the City University of New York to immediately:

* Provide the lines needed to sufficiently staff our Student Health Services
* Allocate funding for the medical equipment and supplies needed to perform the services SHS currently offers and is expected to offer
* Take all steps possible to help SHS best serve students and faculty's health needs
* Ensure all student/faculty health and wellness resources are properly and equally supported across all 25 CUNY schools