Unrest over the proposed “Pathways” restructuring carried well into the night on Tuesday.

Concerned students gathered around candlelit benches and the lawns alongside the Peace Quad at 10:30 p.m. to organize the beginnings of a student-body response.

d’Auria Groux-Holt, a communications freshman, organized and led the gathering, which aimed to produce personal statements from participants either for or against the “Pathways” proposal to cut a number of majors.

The statements are to be forwarded to SGA president Daniel Green, political science junior, and vice-president Bob Payne, political science sophomore.

Even students whose majors were spared suspensions penned a large number of the personal statements.

“Although my major has not been affected, cutting so many programs will greatly reduce Loyola’s already small or limited variance in degree programs,” Nariea Nelson, political science sophomore, wrote.

“Besides being cheated out of an education, I am going to lose treasured friendships,” read a personal statement by Taylor Murrow, a freshman English major hoping to minor in communications. “We’ve already had to adjust to so much. Please don’t ruin the dynamic of this school.”

Another, signed by English sophomore Caitlin Dreger, read, “The cuts will affect my life because I attend this school. I cannot understand why, when this city is in such desperate need of good education, you would chose (sic) to close the education program.”

She added, “The City of New Orleans needs teachers. It (doesn’t need) Loyola University (to discourage students) pursuing that field.”

Deveria Braithwaite, a native of Brooklyn, NY, chose a major in general studies because of her interest in Loyola’s variety of classes, especially broadcast journalism.

“Pathways” proposes to suspend both.

“By turning your backs on us, you are turning your backs on our future. Is cutting these programs worth that?” she asks in her statement.

“As a student, I stand faithfully behind Loyola, now and before the disaster (of Hurricane Katrina), the question is now, does Loyola stand behind me?” Braithwaite adds.

Any of the material gathered on Tuesday night would operate under the slogan, “3500 people. One voice.”

The gathering also hoped to draft some proposed solutions for the university’s administration by night’s end, which Groux-Holt will publish in the future.

“What’s angering us is the timing. We weren’t given a chance to transfer if our majors were cut. It’s during finals, so people are distracted by being worried about getting good grades. And it’s after registration – teachers we’ve registered for may be cut (for Fall 2006),” said Groux-Holt.

“We’re not a protest,” she added. “We’re students organizing for social justice.”

In addition, Groux-Holt looked to draw some of the gathering students into a fundraising plan she’s personally developing. Hoping to utilize contacts she has within the San Francisco Giants and Oakland A’s of Major League Baseball, she hopes to make inroads against the $9 million deficit the school’s facing for next school year.

Groux-Holt is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area.

“I have always done a lot of fund-raising. Because it’s a fiscal problem more than an education one, I’m trying to contact major league teams to literally start raising the $9 million,” she said, encouraging others to approach contacts to do the same with either sports clubs or nonprofit organizations willing to donate the money.

She encourages anyone able to help with fundraising, looking to write a personal statement, or hoping to have a proposal voiced to e-mail her at [email protected].

Ramon Vargas can be reached at [email protected]