California State University trustees will consider more predictable student fee increases and hear a major appeal for public support in reaction to the state budget crisis during their meetings today and Wednesday in the Save Mart Center.

The CSU board of trustees normally meets at its Long Beach headquarters, but it holds at least one of its seven meetings per year at one of the system's 23 campuses.

For this meeting, the trustees travel to California State University, Fresno.

Today's meetings begin at 1 p.m. and should last until about 5 p.m. Wednesday's sessions begin at 8:30 a.m.

Jack O'Connell, state superintendent of public instruction, is scheduled to speak to the board about his proposals to smooth high school students' transition into college. He will call for a new partnership between schools from kindergarten through 12th grade on one hand and higher education on the other. Pete Mehas, Fresno County schools superintendent, will speak during a news conference about the CSU system's importance in educating California's public school teachers. A representative of the California Faculty Association will speak Wednesday about a new coalition of business, government, labor, academic and student leaders pushing to halt cuts to the CSU budget.

The state budget deficit and proposals for additional CSU budget and enrollment cuts underlie the two-day session.

"Our position is simply: no more cuts to the CSU. The system has sacrificed enough," John Travis, the faculty association president, said in a statement.

The coalition says that the cuts Gov. Schwarzenegger has proposed for CSU next fiscal year would raise the total reduction over two years to $500 million.

"This translates into denying admission to tens of thousands of qualified students this year and next," Travis' statement said.

He also warned of "staff reductions and the loss of more than $1.2 billion to the economies of our campus communities."

The state's budget deficit has triggered increases in student fees and reductions in state financial support for all levels of education, Mehas said Monday. This includes the CSU and University of California systems, California community colleges and public schools from kindergarten through 12th grade.

"What happens to CSU has a profound impact on us," Mehas said. "I am not saying, 'Don't cut us.' I am saying that there are certain programs CSU offers that are essential to K-12."

He pointed to courses that train students to become teachers as a prime example. California schools depend on CSU campuses to supply many of their teachers. Mehas said that he and O'Connell are "in sync on that."

"I understand that student fees have to go up," Mehas said. "That is reasonable. But Cal Grants [financial support for lower-income students] have to go up, too. I don't want to see qualified students not get into the system for economic reasons."

The budget Schwarzenegger proposed in January included a long-term student fee policy. He wants to link increases in undergraduate fees to per capita income, but he also calls for flexibility that would allow increases up to 10% to react to financial contingencies.

The board of trustees has 15 members and five ex officio members: Schwarzenegger, Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, O'Connell and CSU Chancellor Charles B. Reed.