Students Say "Farewell to Nova Scotia" to draw attention to discrepancy between fees in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland

Wednesday January 24, university students gathered in Halifax to mockingly bid farewell to Nova Scotia for Newfoundland and Labrador to draw attention to the discrepancy between tuition fees in the two provinces. 

A recent report by researchers at Memorial University found that the number of Nova Scotians studying at the Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) increased by 1,079% between 1999 and 2009. According to the report “total cost” was the most influential factor when Maritimes students chose to study at MUN.

“The government of Nova Scotia often tells students that restoring funding to post-secondary education and reducing tuition fees simply can’t be done,” said said Gabe Hoogers, Nova Scotia National Executive Representative for the Canadian Federation of Students. “We need only look to Newfoundland and Labrador to see that achieving a high-quality and accessible university system is a matter of priorities.”

“If the federal government is serious about providing Aboriginal students with the opportunity to get the skills and training they need to participate in the Canadian economy, it should increase funding available to students who are ready to attend college or university,” said Patrick Smoke, Aboriginal Students' Representative for the Canadian Federation of Students. “The PSSSP has been shown to be a very successful program, but it is dramatically short on funds.”

Due to the funding cap on the PSSSP, approximately 20,000 eligible students are currently on a waiting list to get funding to continue their studies. First Nations and Inuit communities are forced to make extremely difficult decisions about who to fund, and for how much, using limited funds. In addition, Metis and non-status students receive no funding to pursue their education.

“Above and beyond the moral and legal obligation of the federal government to fund Aboriginal Students access to education, ensuring Aboriginal students' right to education would have a significant impact on the Canadian economy,” added Smoke. “The federal government must lift the funding cap on the PSSSP and deliver on long-time promises to Aboriginal Peoples.”

In one week, on February 1, students from across the country will hold a National Student Day of Action to call for increased access to post-secondary education for all students. Students will be holding actions and rallies in several Canadian cities including Halifax, Ottawa, Toronto, Regina and Vancouver to reduce tuition fees, drop student debt and increase education funding.

For more information on the February 1 National Student Day of Action, see www.educationisaright.ca.

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For more information

Roxanne Dubois, National Chairperson, 613-232-7394

Patrick Smoke, Aboriginal Students' Representative, 705-931-2445

On January 11, students at Local 8, The University of Winnipeg Students' Association, came together to participate in a "Freeze Mob" as a lead-up event for the National Day of Action. Students chose two locations on campus and simultaneously stopped moving for two minutes to highlight the importance of freezing tuition. All of the students held signs with provincial and national student-related information to further raise awareness. 

On January 18, Local 8 threw a lead-up event titled "Haircuts, Tuition Fee Cuts, NOT Funding Cuts" where people could sign up for a free hair cut whilst student representatives spoke to members of the student community about the importance of adequately funding post-secondary education. As well, students discussed how financial and political decisions were all a question of priorities, especially with regards to funding cuts to important public services. Student representatives also collected signatures and pledges from students to participate in the Day of Action and petition the provincial government on issues such as institutional funding, tuition fee reductions, and student debt.

View pictures of the event

The Ryerson Students' Union, Local 24, and the Continuing Education Students’ Association at Ryerson (CESAR), Local 105, ramped up mobilizing members for the National Day of Action with a student activist teach-in called “Tools for Change”.

The day-long teach-in was held on Saturday, January 14th at Ryerson and brought students together to explore what it means to be a student activist and to empower members to take action for an anti-racist, post-patriarchal, barrier-free, queer and trans inclusive, anti-colonial campus, community and society.

The workshops focused on the right to education, access and marginalization and featured Valentina Latorre, a student activist from Chile who talked about their recent victories through student action in that country. About 65 student activists took part in the event.

Wednesday January 18, the Canadian Federation of Students-Nova Scotia held an event entitled “Lessons from the Chilean Student Revolt” featuring Valentina Latorre, Vice-President of the student federation of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile at Saint Mary's University. 

This year Chilean university and high school students took over schools and city streets in the largest protests the country has seen in decades. Students are calling for more government funding for universities, the end of the privatization of their institutions and free post-secondary education.

Over 100 Halifax-area students and allies attended the event to hear Valentina speak about the Chilean student movement

Going to college or university is becoming a requirement for today's youth to get an average income. The vast majority of jobs – almost 70 percent – require some form of training or advanced education to gain the skills and knowledge needed just to be considered. However, as the need for higher education has increased, so has the price. Tuition fees have increased four times the rate of inflation over the previous thirty years and pursuing an education has become out of reach for many working families.

In Canada, tuition fees are set by provincial governments, but the federal government also allocates substantial funding to education. However, there is currently no federal agreement on even whether these funds that are flagged as higher education funding are used for post-secondary education.

This situation has resulted in a huge disparity between provinces in access to university and college. Fees in Newfoundland and Labrador, where students are paying an average of $2,649 per year, are, along with Quebec the lowest fees in the country. Alternatively, students in Ontario are paying the highest fees at just over $6,640. This means that, depending on their province of study, students will be charged a different price to get through the door of post-secondary institutions which affects their debt at graduation. It is of no surprise then that high school graduates from Nova Scotia, where tuition fees are second highest in the country, have been flocking to Newfoundland and Labrador to attend higher education.

The current model, where universities and colleges increase tuition fees to make up for the lack of funding, prevents Canadians from gaining the skills and knowledge necessary to fully engage in the economy and their communities. Thus, we have found ourselves in a system that relies on a student's ability to pay a high price to get an education, a system where only those who have enough money have the privilege of pursuing an education.

The good news is that there are solutions to this inequitable model of access. These solutions are known to politicians across the political spectrum. The solutions require the federal government taking responsibility and beginning the conversation with the provinces on building a national framework for post-secondary education. Through such a process, an act could be adopted to provide dedicated funding to the provinces to reduce tuition fees. Reducing up-front financial barriers to pursuing education is the most efficient way to increase access to education.

It was not long ago that Canadians recognized that the federal government has a role to play in ensuring a minimum level of access to health care across the country. The adoption of the Canada Health Act that provides funding and minimum requirements for access to health care services confirmed the federal government's role even while health care is traditionally a provincial responsibility. The lack of a federal act dealing with post-secondary education means that we are in a similar situation as before the Canada Health Act  different levels of access depending on the province in which you live and work.

Over the past ten years, committed provincial governments who recognized the importance of education have frozen or reduced tuition fees. To make these kind of progressive policies permanent, it will take a federal vision and framework that makes sure access is the same across the country, regardless of socio-economic background. Far from being a privilege, education is the only way to provide everyone with the opportunity to make a decent living and to realize our full potential.

Published in Rabble.

A snowstorm in St. John’s did not stop students from coming out to have their photo taken at a student debt wall event hosted by the Memorial University of Newfoundland Students’ Union on January 11, 2012. Despite having some of the most affordable tuition fees in the country, the average student debt in Newfoundland and Labrador is still $25,000. The first nineteen students whose pictures were taken carried a total of $256,000 in student debt and that number continued to climb throughout the day.

The student debt photo shoot was the first of several events that will be held leading up to the National Day of Action on February 1. As students filed through the University Centre to collect their Newfoundland and Labrador Student Loans, many stopped to share their story and learn how they can take part in Feb 1 events.

Photos of the event

To get students involved with the National Student Day of Action, URSU held a banner making party where students could use their political power and artistic ability to have their voices heard. The banners and posters will be used throughout the Saskatchewan segment of ALL OUT - FEB. 1 and will be part of a national movement drawing attention to post-secondary education issues. Actions speak louder than words so what could be louder than words followed by action? We'll find out Feb. 1.

Photos of the event

Ontario tuition fees are higher than in any other province, even with the government's new grant in place. The grant will not be accessible to most students in college and university, and takes funding from existing grant programs. Students understand that this grant does not apply to most students and does nothing to prevent tuition fees from increasing.

"Student debt and tuition fees are ballooning out of control, so students are taking action to change the dire situation in Ontario" said Elizabeth Kessler, VP University Affairs of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa. “The government has a responsibility to ensure affordable, high quality education for everyone”.

Students will be marching to parliament hill on February 1st to demand better access to education through tuition fee reductions.