Generalized financial fleecing of Graduate students through the recategorization of what could be covered under tuition, now charged

as "student fees" (which are not covered by assistantships). An Administration (mostly Cheng and Poshard) who insult the intelligence of the Graduate student body by blaming the State of Illinois for failing to provide the latter's portion of the funding for operations. Insulting, because everyone knows that it's ultimately in the interests of the top administrators to increasingly privatize the University, since such dollars do not come with State restrictions, and thus can be used, essentially, however it pleases them. Chancellor and President of the University are reduced to mere fund raisers, and thus grossly overpaid at that. And it appears to be mostly resume padding and pandering to clueless customer/undergrads, parents, and tax payers ignorant of the public good that the University serves, which is infinitely more than the mere churning out of a work force just educated enough to do their jobs. This mismanagement is supported by a false distinction between "Capital Budgets" (which they claim are in good shape) and "Operating Budgets" (about which they claim are in bad shape because of State strictures). God forbid we amend budgetary flexibility and move the money around in order to avoid further cuts to academic departments (which fulfill the mission of the University in the first place). I suppose they worry about setting that precedent. But in times of "crisis" (let's not forget that rhetoric) it seems they will only defend those extreme measures that result in egregious academic cuts. Nope, let's keep our bloated salaries and treat the University like a corporation and treat our students like customers. It's quite a disgrace. But even if this (according to Cheng) impossible movement between budgets isn't granted (and they won't grant it, but not for good reason), Cheng claims that a reduction in fees would be a reduction in services. Yes, so be it! I can't think of any graduate student that I've met here who would lament such a reduction in services, since none of us have time to utilize most of them ($200 a semester for the football field? What a gross display of asinine highway robbery). I won't even begin to delve into the pathetic attempt at a long-term power grab that this administration engaged in during the negotiations with the Faculty (one that rightfully failed). This University is so painfully mismanaged it makes me sick. I have had to fight tooth and nail for every little thing here, and it's exhausting. EVERY semester there is a problem with my student account, through no fault of my own. I have to fight to get my tuition waiver through EVERY semester (and this current semester was the worst battle of them all: it seems no one could understand how a PhD candidate could have an assistantship and federal work study. It resulted in late charges that I should not have been responsible for in the first place, and which I am STILL fighting to get cleared.) I am not the exception. Such stories among the graduate student body abound throughout this campus. We are categorized as "students" when it's convenient, "employees" when it's convenient. We are all sick and tired of it. It is we who to the actual leg-work of teaching and fulfilling of the mission of the University and we want concrete recognition for that fact. We aren't getting it. Instead, we get the typical boilerplate standard while the administration pisses money away on the inessential and cuts from the essential.