On Tuesday, Sept. 26, the Save UMB Coalition held a meeting to discuss two of their current campaigns. One will advocate for the $15 minimum wage in the state of Massachusetts with paid leave by 2018, the second endorsing the Fair Share Amendment. These two campaigns have been taken by advocacy groups at universities across the U.S.

The Save UMB Coalition has been an active and vocal group on UMass Boston’s campus since May of 2016 when discussions of the University of Massachusetts Boston’s budget crisis stirred and intensified conversations between the administration and students.

One of the most active voices of the coalition is English and American studies professor Joe Ramsey, who has lead the group and advocated against the budget cuts.

At a recent press conference earlier this month, Ramsey said to a large audience of staff, students, and reporters that “the Board of Trustees need to take immediate action” regarding the state of UMass Boston.

An unnamed member of the coalition led parts of the discussion at the recent meeting. They asked the audience: “Do we have any idea why we are in a budget crisis? Fundamentally, UMass Boston has had to take under an enormous amount of construction.”

Another member of the coalition at the meeting pointed out that since UMass Boston is a commuter school with a diverse population of students, the budget cuts and the recent dorm constructions are signs of privatization. The member further explained that students might not be aware of where the school is heading: “People don’t know that they’re walking into privatization.”

Since the last press conference, the coalition proposed for the administration to explain the budget cuts, why there is a shortage in shuttle buses, and why the Early Learning Center had to be shut down.

While some have viewed UMass Boston’s multiple construction projects as the reason for the deficit, others have remained more skeptical.

UMass Boston’s Board of Trustees and other members of the administration have stated that most of the past year’s completed construction projects have been through public-private-partnerships (P3s).

UMass Boston Director of Communications Dewayne Lehman told The Mass Media last month that due to the partnership with P3s, UMass Boston isn’t directly paying for the school’s construction projects. Other members of the administration have said in the past—since former Chancellor J. Keith Motley’s leadership—that years of mismanagement have caused the budget crisis.

Many in the UMass Boston community, including faculty and students, have expressed confusion and frustration in regards to the inconveniences resulting from the deficit. Yet, many questions remain unanswered. It is still unclear to the community what has actually caused UMass Boston’s deficit.