A group of 10 upperclassmen art students created an organization called Stand Up in response to the possible 35 percent budget cut that may occur July 2011.Duygu Aksu, art junior from Germany, said that after The Nicholls Worth came out on Sept. 23, she and a group of other art students got together and discussed their options about what they can do to save Nicholls.

“We got so upset,” Aksu said. “We got so passionate and started asking each other what we could do. We brainstormed and decided to start a nonprofit organization.”

A Facebook group, titled “Stand Up!,” was created in about 30 minutes, and a Web site, www.standup4la.org, was created later that night. Friday morning, about 245 students, faculty, staff and community members joined the Facebook group. Today, the group has generated over 1,000 members.

While some members may have added the Facebook group without knowing its cause, Mariella Jimenez, art junior from Thibodaux, said some are really concerned and ready to fight for their University.

“This is our civil rights movement,” Ehsivar Cuodo, English and music junior from New Orleans and Facebook member of Stand Up, said. “Don’t let the government and corporate America tell you what to do with your money. We must unite as students, teachers and faculty and combat oppression with the voices of millions.”

Though Stand Up may eventually travel with its members to protest the budget cuts at the state capitol, the main purpose of the group is to spread awareness across the Nicholls community and to other Louisiana colleges and communities, Amy Mahler, senior from St. Rose and leader of Stand up, said.

“The motto really says it all,” Mahler said. “Stand for nothing, fall for anything. If you don’t stand up against anything, then you’re just a statistic, and you’re going to be buried under this campus when it goes down.”

Stand Up is spreading awareness by contacting media, such as Nicholls’ radio station, KNSU, and other local radio stations and newspapers.

“We’re also collecting donations,” Mahler said. “The donations will go towards flyers, posters and other things like that.”

The items created with the donations will be used to spread more awareness and for future peaceful protests.

Mahler said that she and her friends felt they were expected to create the organization as art students.

“We felt that we were the ones who had to start the movement,” Jimenez said. “That’s our job, to put propaganda out there.”

“Last year, Elise Hotard started this, with the shark at state capitol,” Mahler said. “It stemmed off of that. We already had a path, so let’s make it bigger. Let’s make it globalized for other people involved and not just Nicholls students.”

Elise Hotard, Nicholls alumna, was one of the students who raised a protest referred to as “Stop Eating Our Education” last year by bringing the shark sculpture outside of Talbot Hall to the state capitol with other Nicholls students.

“It’s so cool that people are actually taking a stand,” Hotard said. “I know the biggest problem for me was that this is a commuter school, so it was really hard to get people together. It seems like they’ve got this great unifier though.”

Hotard wished Stand Up good luck in raising awareness and was very happy that instead of panicking, students are stressing the importance of uniting and finding a solution.

Stand Up is also working to get other universities involved. Mahler said that because the budget cuts are all over Louisiana, other universities need to be aware of what could happen.

“If they can do this to Nicholls, then they can do this somewhere else,” Lauren Jones, art senior from Centerville, Iowa, said. “Just the fact that they’re even thinking about this as an option is scary.”

There are currently no scheduled meetings in place, but Mahler said the Web site will be updated frequently with information about what people can do to help and about future meetings and events.

All students, faculty, staff and community members are welcome to join and participate in the organization’s cause by joining the Facebook group and watching for updates on StandUp4LA.org.