A Quiet Clamor : Protest: Moorpark College students voice their anger over proposed fee hikes by writing letters to state lawmakers.

It was an unusual protest for a college campus: no speakers, no signs, no chants.

Just 400 Moorpark College students furiously scribbling letters to the governor and other state officials, beseeching them to abandon a proposed increase in school fees.

“We thought if we used speakers, it would distract from getting people to write,” said Jason Henderson, student body president. “This is a lot more effective than just standing around on a soapbox.”

The event was billed as a class walkout, Henderson said. Students were encouraged to leave their 11 a.m. classes and attend the hourlong writing demonstration instead.

Half a dozen tables with paper, pens and pencils were set up outside the student campus center so students could mass-produce the letters.

The correspondence was aimed at Gov. Pete Wilson and three Republican legislators whose districts include or are near the college: 37th District Assemblyman Nao Takasugi (Oxnard), 38th District Assemblywoman Paula Boland (Granada Hills) and 19th District state Sen. Cathie Wright (Simi Valley). Students eagerly dropped their backpacks and books to kneel at the tables and vent their frustration in print. Most letters were one page, but a few writers spilled their thoughts onto two or three pages.

Last year, Wilson proposed raising student fees at community colleges statewide from $6 a unit to $20 a unit. The Legislature increased it to $10 a unit instead. This year, Wilson has proposed raising the fee to $30 a unit and slashing funding to community colleges by about 11%.

A typical full-time student takes 12 units, officials said.

“Come and write Pete Wilson and tell him how you feel!” yelled John Campbell, who was in charge of the Wilson letters. “But you can’t use derogatory language.”

Campbell didn’t need to entreat his audience too much. His table was the most popular, and more than 250 letters were written to Wilson in less than an hour.

Few of the letters contained profanity, and all the letters will be screened for false signatures before they are posted this week, said Henderson, who is paying for postage.

“Most of them are serious,” Henderson said. “I just didn’t want to undermine it by sending some letter with Mary Poppins signed on it or anything.”

Shelly Livingston of Simi Valley, a 33-year-old single parent and full-time graphic arts student, said higher fees next year would force her to reduce her class load and take a job. She is on a scholarship now, but it would not cover the higher fees, she said.

“Most people come here because they can’t afford to go to a university,” said Livingston, who took time from her algebra class Tuesday to pen letters to Wilson, Takasugi and Wright.

Livingston said she thought the protest was an effective and organized way to appeal to legislators. Students who might be too shy to participate in a noisy demonstration are willing to write letters, she said.

College President Jim Walker attended the protest. “The administration didn’t officially endorse this,” he said, “but democracy is an important part of the learning process.”

Walker said he thought the protest was more sophisticated than typical demonstrations. Looking at the hundreds of students milling about the tables, he hastily added: “But we also believe students should be in classes.”

Raul Cortez, a freshman engineering student from Fillmore, said he didn’t dare walk out of his 11 a.m. calculus class. “We have a test on Thursday,” Cortez said. “The teacher was reviewing what was going to be on it.”

But Cortez said he did his share after class by jotting a letter to Wilson, asking the governor to drop his proposal to increase student fees next year.

“Next year, I may have to be a part-time student,” said Cortez, who is putting himself through school by working at a snack bar.