UC Students Caught In Middle Of Tuition Battle

8 A.M. Ben Adler gives a preview of today's University of California's proposed tuition hike.

5 A.M. The University of California Board of Regents meets Wednesday in San Francisco to debate the UC’s proposed tuition increase.

In one corner, there’s University of California President Janet Napolitano, who says the UC has no choice but to increase student tuition by 5 percent for five consecutive years – unless it gets more state funding.

In the other corner, there’s Gov. Jerry Brown, who says he’s already promised the UC a funding increase – if it keeps tuition frozen.

And in the middle, there are the students.

“I honestly don’t think that students should be used as political pawns,” says UC Student Association President Jefferson Kuoch-Seng, a senior at UC Merced. “We were expecting a tuition freeze for a few years. And then all of a sudden, this tuition proposal pretty much just pops up on us.”

Students are planning a rally at the Regents meeting. But the real fireworks could be inside: Brown and Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins both sit on the board – and both plan to attend.

Meanwhile, UC Davis students are protesting the proposed tuition hike. KCRA reports on Tuesday, hundreds of students chanted, marched and banged drums to show their frustration. The protest also marked the three-year anniversary of the day that pepper spray was used by university police on students who gathered on the campus for an Occupy movement.

Ben Adler talks about the decision on News 10