Written for the Argo by M. R. Dietrich and Kayla Lavecchia.

GALLOWAY, N.J. — On Thursday, October 8 at 1:00 P.M., a protest against the State of the Union took place outside the entrance to Stockton Galloway’s Campus Center entrance. The event was created by Students for Justice in Palestine’s with Jack Bizga and Hana Alhalawani as the co-Presidents. Approximately 150-200 students were present at the event. In light of current University affairs, during the State of the University address in the Campus Center Theatre, faculty, staff and students held ground outside to say “We have had enough.” This event came in effect from the email sent to all Stockton students from Joe Bertolino, president of Stockton University, on October 6, 2026 announcing, “Currently, we know 14 faculty positions and 7 professional staff represented by AFT will be laid off at the end of the current academic year.” Two days later, a protest occurred in light of the shocking news.

The protest directed financial and employment issues towards Bertolino, but despite the layoffs and his own pay raise, he wasn’t solely responsible for the current events. Gov. Mikie Sherrill cut state aid to Stockton University, reducing funding to its Atlantic City campus by roughly 46.5%. Said campus was built during the previous administration, in which then-governor Phil Murphy promised the funding to Stockton, in hopes to improve Atlantic City and for the institution to gain headway against competitors like Rutgers and Rowan University.

The audience had also directed their attention to the changes made to the Holocaust programs website. More information can be found here. The School of Arts and Humanities and Professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies and Director of the Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide Studies program, Raz Segal, led the protest where several dozens of members gathered, sharing speeches and poems as their words echoed from the microphone outside the campus center doors, to the theatre where Bertolino addressed these updates.

Many attendees took to the microphone to voice their grievances and concerns. Poet and first year writing professor, Jacob Wolos, stressed, “This connectivity was critical for us to maintain our momentum … .This can’t be one and done.” He also led the congregation in calling out shame to various members of Stockton’s Board of Trustees, donors, and Sherill. “Your complicity is noted,” Wolos added at the end of each name. Wolos also made it a note to carry on the cause after the protest concluded. “And I would strongly suggest, if you are a student here, faculty, staff, concerned, community member, parent of a student, alumni, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, I would consider following that group so that you can see what is going on and how. How can you stay connected? I think this connectivity is critical for us to maintain any momentum.”

Students were especially vocal about issues with the situation of late. “So for many of us, Stockton has felt like home. But that feeling did not come from the building or this administration. It came from the faculty and staff who saw us, supported us and advocated for us,” said G. Charlie St. Jean, a student senator on the Diversity Equity Inclusion Committee. “They understood what it meant to navigate this institution as students with marginalized identities. So when black and brown faculty are laid off, it doesn’t seem like just a staffing decision; It feels like a piece of our community is taken away.” The Multicultural Center, as of this article’s writing, has dwindled from program cuttings, reducing it to a standard event room.

Student Senator on the finance committee, Barbara Montes-Ocelot stated, “You guys need to show up. We need to see that you’re organized, and the fact that you’re willing to back us up. I know for a fact that I want to investigate and see where all of this money is going.”

“Earlier this year in late September, my faculty advisor for the birding club who has been with us for three years, he taught one of [my] bio classes…he helped me in so many ways,” said Breanna Hawkins, President and Founder of Birding Club, trying to keep her composure as she spoke. “And by getting rid of our faculty, getting rid of our staff, it’s affecting students. They’re acting like it doesn’t matter when it does.” Many other departments are facing harder places, like Sustainability potentially merging with Environmental Science and the thinning of the Communication Studies department’s already-small team.

A handful of chants were recited at the event, such as “Our tuition! Our school!”, “Mikie Sherill, what do you say, fund higher ed today?”, “From Gaza to The Pines, Scholasticide is a crime!”, and “1! 2! 3! Palestine will be free. 4! 5! 6! Stockton will be next!”

At 3:15 P.M., protesters gathered in the campus center while facing the theatre, chanting to see President Bertolino exit the state of the union meeting. He did not appear, supposedly taking an alternative route. Shortly after, The Stockton Federation of Teachers and their supporters held their own rally in Independence Plaza, delivering their own responses and testimonies to President Bertolino’s address.