Free Skool Santa Cruz (FSSC) is a completely grassroots effort, a collection of locals acting collectively and autonomously to create a skill-sharing network, a school without institutional control. It is an opportunity to learn from others and share what they know, to help create self-reliance, vital communities, and beauty in the world. Classes and workshops offered during the summer of 2008 include free drawing at Natural Bridges, Ju-Jitsu, knitting, letter writing to prisoners, consent and sexual/intimate violence, building a bike wheel, and so much more.
On July 18th, I went to the Bike Church because the back tire was flat on my bicycle. Although the mechanic was getting ready to close shop for the day, I given a warm welcome to put my bike up on a rack and repair it myself. It felt good to personally take care of my transportation needs rather than rely on the assistance of someone else. I returned home, checked my Free Skool Santa Cruz calendar, and learned that a class called “Intro to Bikes, Bike Maintenance” was being held the next morning at the Bike Church.
That next morning, July 19th, I rode down to the Bike Church ready for my first day of summer skool. A very kind bike church mechanic and two other classmates were ready to get started. The class was a practical overview of the bicycle, from brakes to shifting to proper tool usage. It was also a useful introduction to the Bike Church. Time was allocated for group instruction and discussion during the first portion of class and then time was given for the three of us to troubleshoot our own bicycles with guidance from the mechanic. One highlight for us was learning to true our wheels. After class, not only did our bicycles ride much smoother, but we felt empowered and made new friendships. Read More and View Photos
Incoming UC Santa Cruz students and their families got an official orientation to college on July 17th while campus service workers were striking for the fourth day in a row. Since 2004, the Student and Worker Coalition for Justice (SWCJ) at UC Santa Cruz has been working to spread awareness and solidarity with the hardest-working and lowest-paid employees at the University of California (UC). In the last year alone, the demand to end poverty wages at the UC has been carried far and wide, including meetings of the UC Regents, dorms, dinning halls and classrooms, an alumni fundraiser luncheon, a $1,000 a plate dinner with Chancellor George Bluementhal, the Chancellor’s inauguration, Highway 1, as well as to representatives in Sacramento. Service workers are vital to the UC, however AFSCME, the union representing the workers, reports that they are nowhere near reaching a fair settlement with the UC. 
July 14th kicked off AFSCME’s five day strike at the University of California’s ten campuses and five medical centers. At UC Santa Cruz, AFSCME workers, students, workers from supporting unions, and other community members are picketing at the intersection of Bay and High at the base of campus. County buses are respecting the picket line by dropping people off at the base of campus. Some classes were held at the base of the campus and other spaces in Santa Cruz. Scabs have been hired by the UC, but AFSCME workers say as the week continues, people will start to notice declines in the quality of service and cleanliness in buildings, bathrooms, dinning halls and throughout campus. 
Many students graduate from UC Santa Cruz without ever stepping foot in the undeveloped North Campus, also known as Upper Campus. North Campus is a hundred-year old redwood and chaparral forest that provides spectacular habitat for a wide range of flora and fauna, many of which are listed as endangered or declining species. Even though many students are not familiar with this portion of the university, there are other students, as well as Santa Cruz locals and outdoor enthusiasts from around the world that make use of the trails in North Campus for research and recreation.
On June 6th, George Blumenthal was inaugurated as the 10th Chancellor of UC Santa Cruz during a ceremony on UCSC’s East Field. Students and workers, organized through the Student and Worker Coalition for Justice (SWCJ) and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), held a 10-hour day of action to deliver a loud and clear message — end poverty wages at the University of California. George M. Marcus, a Regent of the University of California, was a passenger in one of the many cars rerouted or delayed by the demonstration.
