Campus & community, Campus news

Protesters occupy Tolman Hall

By Public Affairs

About 75 protesters gathered inside Tolman Hall Thursday (Sept. 22), taking over empty classrooms following a noontime rally on Sproul Plaza and a march across campus.

The protest ended after 9 p.m. Thursday, following an announcement by campus police that the building had closed and everyone had to leave.

Due to a “poor” seismic rating, no regular classes are held in the building, which includes offices for the psychology department and the Graduate School of Education.

“We share the students’ frustrations over the state’s disinvestment in higher education, and we absolutely support their right to free speech,” said Claire Holmes, the campus’s associate vice chancellor for public affairs. “We all want Berkeley to remain the world’s leading public university.”