BERKELEY -- A boisterous group of students and faculty marched Thursday to the office of University of California, Berkeley Chancellor Robert Berdahl to protest a decision by the campus' continuing education program to end its English Language Program, or ELP, for foreign students.

"ELP is not just a school, but also a family for us," said Bengu Halavut, a student from Turkey who is finishing her second session in the language program.

Halavut's comments were met with hoots and cheers from the 100 or so protesters who rallied outside Berdahl's office against the impending closure and the layoff of 32 faculty members who teach ELP courses.

"Something that I love is dying," said ELP instructor Cliff Stevens.

Officials with the UC Berkeley Extension announced in January they would close the ELP program after its current session ends in May. Dean James Sherwood said the 30-year-old program doesn't meet the extension's changing mission. The extension -- the financially self-supporting, continuing education branch of UC Berkeley -- will focus on programs that best complement offerings at the main campus.

Sherwood said the program no longer meets the need it did upon opening in 1973, when it was one of the first English-language programs in the country.

But faculty and students say they hope Berdahl will intervene to save ELP, which they say makes money for the extension and provides an important service for foreign students.

"All the excuses (for closing the program) are lame excuses," Halavut said.

Sherwood said the decision to close ELP followed a six-month review of all extension programs. He refuted faculty assertions that the program is a money-maker, saying it is projected to lose $476,000 this year.

Sherwood said he doubted the decision to close the program would be changed.

"I think what we need to do is make more public all the reasoning involved in the decision," Sherwood said. "We just need to get the message out about the exact reason. Once we do, people will understand."