Reply #36: Good news for those of you who appreciate

[Bill McBlueState]

Good news for those of you who appreciate international students' contribution to our academic institutions:

---

AMHERST - The University of Massachusetts will comply with an arbitrator's decision and eliminate the $65 international student fee the Graduate Employee Organization has been fighting since the fall.

An arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association ruled two weeks ago the fee was discriminatory and ordered the university to stop charging the fee to graduate student employees and to refund the per-semester fee to students who had already paid it. The university announced yesterday it has decided not to appeal the ruling.

"While we disagree with the conclusion reached by the arbitrator, we respect the process of arbitration and will comply with the arbitrator's decision," said Chancellor John V. Lombardi in a prepared statement. "As a matter of fairness, we also decided that we should take an additional step and end the fee for all international students."

---

more at http://www.masslive.com/hampfrank/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-5/109307449380412.xml