Students from the Departments of Art, Music, and Theatre protested the anticipated $3.2 million cut in UT’s budget on March 7, 1996, with a march from the Art and Architecture Building to Ayres Hall, where they staged a sit-in demonstration. On March 13 students carried signs and chanted “Go tell Sundquist, no unfunded mandates” outside the Republican banquet at the Hyatt Regency, attended by Sundquist and Vice President Dan Quayle. A spokesman for Sundquist joined the students in a discussion of their concerns, but inside the Hyatt, Sundquist told reporters that he was aware of the protestors and that the solution to their ills lay in the hands of UT administrators. Sundquist indicated that UT should look at reducing its overhead costs and putting more money into its classrooms.