SRA meeting on Jan. 29 involved discussions on the role of the Ombuds Office, the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance and the MSU rejoining CASA.
he Student Representative Assembly meeting 22M took place on Jan. 29 in Gilmour Hall. In this meeting, the assembly covered the accessibility and services of the Ombuds Office, the initiatives being pushed by the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance and a motion for the McMaster Students Union to have observer status on the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations.
University Ombuds Carolyn Brendon and Assistant Ombuds Meghan Rego attended the SRA meeting and spoke on the role of the Ombuds Office and the services it offers to McMaster University students.
The Ombuds Office representatives as a part of an outreach initiative to help the university better understand the role of the office within the community.
The Ombuds Office is located at MUSC 210 and offers free and confidential counseling to all members of the McMaster community. Brendan explained that the mandate of the Ombuds details three key principles by which their practices abide by — independence, impartiality and confidentiality.
The Ombuds Office operates outside of the academic and administrative hierarchy and strives for minimal institutional impediments. They also abide by standard confidentiality principles, in which all information discussed is confidential unless there is an imminent risk of harm.
The Ombuds Office operates outside of the academic and administrative hierarchy and strives for minimal institutional impediments. They also abide by standard confidentiality principles, in which all information discussed is confidential unless there is an imminent risk of harm.
The Ombuds Office deals with academic and non-academic issues, including student financial matters, behavioral and professional codes of conduct, employment and any other student-related issues and concerns.
OUSA President Jessica Look and executive director Malika Dhanani also spoke at the SRA meeting about their organization. OUSA is a collaboration of student governments across the province that advocates for affordable, accessible, accountable and high quality post-secondary education.
Some of the core functions of OUSA include developing informed substantive policy papers, lobbying the provincial government to enact changes and representing the student perspective on the provincial level.
Some of the core functions of OUSA include developing informed substantive policy papers, lobbying the provincial government to enact changes and representing the student perspective on the provincial level.
Look and Dhanani detailed how they aim to uplift the student voice through their blog, where student contributors outside of OUSA are free to submit pieces on policy issues they are passionate about. Additionally, OUSA offers summer student internships.
Following the discussion on OUSA’s initiatives and role representing the MSU, the meeting transitioned to other matters, including a discussion around seeking observership with CASA.
The motion to discuss and vote on CASA observership was moved by MSU President Simranjeet Singh and seconded by Vice President (Education) Elizabeth Wong. Singh shared that CASA is currently the largest body that does advocacy work for student unions at the federal level.
The MSU is currently part of a separate federal advocacy organization, the Undergraduates of Canadian Research-Intensive Universities. Singh explained that with UCRU, the MSU was able to meet with 20 Members of Parliament during lobbying week, while members of CASA were able to meet with 156. The MSU was a member of CASA in the past but left in 2017 due to issues with their management of affairs.
Singh and Wong are proposing CASA observership, a two-year process in which the MSU would attend meetings and try out a CASA membership. Observership would allow the MSU to make an informed decision about whether shifting to CASA involvement would be beneficial.
Singh and Wong are proposing CASA observership, a two-year process in which the MSU would attend meetings and try out a CASA membership. Observership would allow the MSU to make an informed decision about whether shifting to CASA involvement would be beneficial.
Observership can be revoked at any point with no consequence and the MSU would remain with UCRU throughout the observership. Following some discussion, the motion was passed with 26 in favour, zero opposed and two abstaining.
Proposed governmental changes aim to make sexual violence reporting at Ontario universities more survivor-centric
C/O Aditya Joshi
cw: sexual violence
The provincial government of Ontario is proposing changes to sexual violence and harassment policies at post-secondary institutions.
These changes are being made to Ontario regulation 131/16. This was implemented in January 2017 to establish a standard of sexual violence policies in colleges and universities.
The changes, proposed in January 2021, will ensure that students reporting sexual violence or harassment are not asked about their past sexual history. Furthermore, individuals reporting will not face consequences for violating the institution’s alcohol and drug policy.
The proposed amended regulation would require post-secondary institutions to update their sexual violence policies. There would be no additional costs or burden on the institution or students.
The changes, proposed in January 2021, will ensure that students reporting sexual violence or harassment are not asked about their past sexual history. Furthermore, individuals reporting will not face consequences for violating the institution’s alcohol and drug policy.
These changes aim to reduce the fear and stigma that survivors may face when reporting gender-based violence. The proposed changes come from policy recommendations made by the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance in Spring 2020.
The McMaster Students Union is a member of OUSA and contributed to the policy recommendations. The paper was co-authored by former MSU Vice-President (Education) Shemar Hackett and AVP Provincial and Federal Affairs Angel Huang. Many of the recommendations also mirrored similar suggestions made by the MSU Sexual Violence and Response policy.
The paper outlined the current challenges with gender-based and sexual violence prevention and response, including disclosure and reporting.
The disclosure and reporting section included an explanation of how institutional hierarchies make it more difficult for students to report sexual violence and harassment. The paper went on to explain the existing insufficient education and training for campus police, staff, faculty and student instructors.
OUSA explained that there is a lack of knowledge on how to respond to gender-based violence and support survivors in a trauma-informed and survivor-centric way.
Among other suggested resolutions, OUSA recommended strengthening legislative and regulatory frameworks such as Ontario regulation 131/16.
“We know that gender-based violence and sexual violence is not just a problem at institutions but a systemic problem across society and it certainly exists [on] campuses. At McMaster, but also across the provinces, we've heard from students and advocates and experts that the current policies are not survivor-centric and they're not friendly toward people to come forward [to report],” explained MSU VP Education Ryan Tse.
"At McMaster, but also across the provinces, we've heard from students and advocates and experts that the current policies are not survivor-centric and they're not friendly toward people to come forward [to report].”
MSU VP Education Ryan Tse
On March 16, McMaster University staff member, Christopher McAllister was arrested and charged with sexual assault. McAllister had ties to the department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour, which underwent a climate review in July 2020 for systemic and cultural issues linked to sexual violence and harassment.
Other allegations in the PNB department, such as the June 2020 charge on Scott Waters for two counts of sexual assault, are still being investigated by McMaster as of February 2021.
“I think this [proposed change] is important because hopefully, it will help to build a little more trust between the community and the institution but, more importantly, just make the policy safer and provide more accountability,” said Tse.
The proposed changes by the Ontario government will make the province one of the only in Canada to legally prevent survivors from having to answer irrelevant questions and be prosecuted by substance use policies.
"It's really important that students continue to speak out and speak up for these changes, through OUSA but through other means as well,” said Tse.
Tse explained that in the future, OUSA looks forward to continuing their advocacy for the other policy recommendations they made to ensure policies are more survivor-centric, evidence-based and informed from the lived experiences of survivors.
“This is a really good first step and it's nice to hear that the government is listening to the voices of students . . . It's really important that students continue to speak out and speak up for these changes, through OUSA but through other means as well,” said Tse.
As post-secondary students across Ontario begin to experience the impacts of the updated Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP), the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) has launched a province-wide campaign encouraging students to express their concerns with the OSAP cuts and demand change.
Earlier this year, Premier Doug Ford’s Conservative government announced several alterations to OSAP. Some changes include the removal of the six month post-graduation grace period in which student loans do not accrue interest, cuts in funding and grants going to low-income families, as well as an update to the definition of independent student.
While the Ford administration claims that the decision to cut tuition by 10 per cent keeps Ontario’s most vulnerable families in mind, many students are unconvinced.
“I work two part-time jobs on campus, work full-time during the summer and still rely on OSAP grants,” said one McMaster student in OUSA’s campaign video on OSAP cuts.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7meTavY8DnY[/embedyt]
On Sept. 10, 2019, OUSA announced a letter-writing campaign in response to recent changes made by the provincial government to OSAP.
Formed in 1992, OUSA is a provincial lobbying organization that represents 150,000 students at eight student associations across Ontario, including McMaster. It aims to effectively lobby the provincial government for change and to ensure that Ontario students receive an affordable post-secondary education.
In response to their call for participants, OUSA received over 200 letters from students across the province who shared how they would be impacted by the OSAP changes.
The cuts to OSAP have caused Adam Yu, a second year McMaster student in integrated biomedical engineering and health sciences, to rethink his post-graduation plans.
"It's one less safety net for me when I graduate, which really makes me worry about my financial outlooks. It dissuades me from pursuing my aspirations of medical school,” said Yu in his letter.
Others have had to take on take on additional work hours, which affects the amount of time they can spend on school and extracurriculars.
"OSAP has had a huge effect on my student life this year. As a result of OSAP cuts I have had to actively look out for part time jobs which will have an effect on the amount of time I can spend on extracurriculars that I enjoy doing,” wrote a student who wishes to remain anonymous.
Students also expressed worry about paying off their student loans. Previously, there was a six month period post-graduation in which interest was not charged on student loans. The removal of the grace period was another cause of concern that students mentioned in their letters.
“I am scared that I won’t have the grace period before interest starts once I graduate,” said Jessica Lim, a student in their last year at the University of Toronto Scarborough.
OUSA has now called for the provincial government to reverse the changes made to OSAP and consult students for a framework that meets their needs in a public letter sent to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, Ross Romano.
“The adverse effects of these changes have already been felt by students across the province who rely on financial assistance to access post-secondary education and enter the workforce,” said OUSA in their letter.
The letter continues to say that some students have been forced to postpone or withdraw from their post-secondary education because they no longer have the financial assistance required to continue with their studies.
OUSA has asked that all students affected by or concerned about the changes made to OSAP sign the letter and, if comfortable, add their own personal story to send to Premier Ford, Minister Romano and their local member of provincial parliament.
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By: Jackie McNeill
The Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance recently launched its OUSA Votes campaign to promote student voting in the upcoming provincial and municipal elections. For past elections the McMaster Student Union has run a Mac Votes campaign, but this year they are partnering with OUSA and its seven other member schools to get students across Ontario to pledge to vote in the June provincial election.
MSU vice president (Education), Ryan Deshpande, explains that this year’s campaign is getting students aware of the fact that there is a provincial election, flagging issues which they should be concerned about or may not realize are a provincial issue and getting them to pledge to vote for issues that matter to them.
OUSA’s pledge to vote involves more than just the initial pledge, however. Once students pledge through their site, they can be kept updated through email on many issues surrounding the elections, from highlights of candidates’ platforms to reminders when voting opens in June.
The campaign can also help to answer any questions interested students may have about voting.
"It's votes that drive the government, and ensuring that students vote is critical to ensuring that we get what we need in order to thrive in our education."
Ryan Desphande
Vice president (Education)
McMaster Students Union
For example, the use of a voter identification card was removed from the list of acceptable ID for voters in 2015. This left students who did not have their Hamilton address on their government ID unable to vote in the Hamilton municipal elections. Today, you only need proof of address on an official document such as a lease or Internet bill to vote in the Hamilton municipal election, a piece of information OUSA’s pledge could easily answer.
OUSA is also an official stakeholder in the provincial government, where they advocate for on behalf of students. The MSU has the opportunity to reflect the McMaster community’s needs through OUSA’s general assembly, which the vice president (Education) attends with the rest of his team.
Despite the work gone into supporting the student vote, there is a question of student voter apathy, particularly given the low voter turnout of 28 per cent during the 2018 MSU presidential election.
Deshpande and associate vice president (Provincial and Federal Affairs), Urszula Sitarz, believe it is not apathy that deters these students from voting, but rather the idea that the system does not represent or serve them.
“Voting in the MSU election is one step in the broader picture, because when you vote in your MSU president that’s your voice at government too. So if you don’t want the MSU to be your voice at government, be your own voice at government with your vote,” said Deshpande.
While provincial-level student issues like affordable tuition and free textbooks are a large part of discussion on campus, the municipal government is often taken for granted. The municipal election will also happen this year in October 2018.
Issues such as efficient transportation and neighbourhood safety all hinge upon decisions made at city council. In the Hamilton West-Ancaster- Dundas riding, students have the voting power to sway an election, as this riding includes not only McMaster University, but also Mohawk College and Redeemer University College.
“It’s votes that drive the government, and ensuring that students vote is critical to ensuring that we get what we need in order to thrive in our education,” said Desphande.
Whether provincial or municipal, unless students vote, government representatives are unlikely to take student concerns seriously. But with MSU’s and OUSA’s efforts, hopefully this will change.
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On Sept. 12, 2017, the Ontario University Student Alliance released their annual “Educated Solutions” report, which acts as a forum for students and policymakers to discuss their thoughts on that year’s main theme. The theme for this year was student employment.
Throughout the report, authors discussed the problems at hand for students seeking work, whether in the shape of part-time work, co-op placements or filling the “skills gap”.
One report honed in on the failures of the Employee Standards Act for students, arguing it does not protect students from precarious working conditions.
“The ESA explicitly excludes ‘individuals performing work under a program approved by a college of applied arts and technology or university’,” said Jennifer Lewarne, academic affairs commissioner of the Alma Mater Society at Queen’s University, who wrote the piece. “This is particularly problematic as it exposes students to potential mistreatment and exploitation in the workforce.”
Much of the document argued that work-integrated learning programs must cater to students’ needs and listen to what students and faculty are saying in order to develop these work opportunities.
The report is clear: work experience during one’s undergraduate career helps students build skills and give them the right tools to enter the workforce after they finish their bachelor’s degree.
At McMaster, on-campus work opportunities are commonplace; between the McMaster Students Union’s employees, the work/study program and research opportunities, students have the option of gaining work experience while attending university. These jobs, however, have pitfalls.
One of the major downsides to working on campus as opposed to elsewhere are the limited hours many popular jobs offer. Ikram Farah, a political sciences and labour studies student, worked three on-campus jobs last year. Farah worked for Mills Library through the work/study program, as a customer representative for the MSU Compass and as a Residence Life community advisor.
“When I worked as a sales representative outside of campus they could give as many hours as I wanted and it was more feasible because I needed it,” Farah said.
With that in mind though, there are benefits to working on campus, such as open and discreet accommodations. Barkhaa Talat, a life sciences student, echoed this sentiment. Talat worked for Guest Resident Services with Residence Life last year.
“If there have been times where I’ve needed time off, she’ll ask me to come in person and sort it out but they’ve been pretty accommodating with that,” she said.
But it can also be difficult simply finding a job on campus at all. For example, becoming a tour guide for the office of the registrar is often challenging since they hire all of their positions for the entire year in April, when most students are either busy with exams or gone for the summer.
Ruchika Gothoskar, a political sciences student, worked as a tour guide but only found the job out of sheer luck when some of her friends stopped by the tour guide office for an application.
“There are lots and lots of jobs within the Registrar’s office for students, but they’re not advertised well enough. I found out about being a tour guide through my friends,” said Gothoskar.
“There’s little to no advertising for that job other than word-of-mouth which can be a good thing because you have tour guides recommending their very qualified friends and not just [random people] who just want a job but I think there’s a lot of merit in being able to advertise a job well,” she added.
While work experience during one’s undergrad has had well-researched benefits, students still often have barriers accessing these positions.
There is a controversial policy being discussed that could change the university experience forever.
In late June, Premier Kathleen Wynne spoke highly of a proposed plan to make co-op or “experiential learning” mandatory for all post-secondary students. A panel of “business and education experts” was set up in Dec. 2015 to develop an “integrated strategy to better link the education system with the future job needs of the province’s economy.”
At this point, there were no details about how this would be implemented or what any of this structure would look like. The panel’s report recommends the Ontario government funds more placements.
The Ontario Undergraduate Students Alliance, which represents McMaster students, issued a press release in support of the mandatory experiential learning idea. In a paper dated spring 2016, OUSA calls for an elimination of unpaid internships.
These are contradictory actions: flooding the market with people who must complete experiential learning opportunities would mean less paid opportunities because employers know students must do this. There is not enough money to pay interns currently, so adding more will compound the problem.
Nowhere in their press release does OUSA mention the impact this policy could have on unpaid internships. Maybe it got lost in the shuffle, but students need better advocacy than this.
If OUSA is one of the checks and balances for government education policy, they dropped the ball here. Realizing the impact this policy could have does not take incredible abilities – shit, I’m not paid to advocate on education policy and I could figure it out.
Here’s the situation with unpaid internships right now. Under current Ministy of Labour laws, unpaid internships are legal when the employee is not paid the minimum wage for the hours you work. Some internships may give honourariums but are still classified as unpaid.
These are only allowed under certain rules. It has to be educational (usually meaning it is coordinated through a post-secondary program), it must have a benefit to the intern (I would hope so?), it must not replace someone’s paid job, the employer derives little, if any, benefit from the activity of the intern while he or she is being trained, and the intern must not be promised a job at the end of the training period.
In 2014, the Ministry of Labour started to crackdown on illegal unpaid internships, forcing Toronto Life and The Walrus to fire their interns.
If Ontario adopts this plan, hundreds of thousands of students would have to find placements.
To develop the internships necessary to meet the demands of an ever-rising post-secondary population, employers will create opportunities, and it is highly unlikely these would be paid.
Students have to do placements, and employers do not have piles of cash sitting around to pay them.
Employers will welcome this idea with open arms because damn, it is free labour that has an inherent grasp of technology that the previous generations lack. Every workplace can use someone with modern technology skills.
But internships, if meaningful, are time consuming. This policy would remove time for people to earn money to pay for their education. While the current internship structure favours students from upper-middle class situations because they can afford to skip the income, mandatory experiential learning does not solve the problem.
Are we really “leveling the playing field” if you are eliminating players because some cannot afford school?
Students need advocacy more than ever and that is why we pay $2.90 each for OUSA. Some could say OUSA had not understood or considered the impact on unpaid internships yet but that is not good enough. The organization had a policy about this issue and did not follow it when they issued a press release.
Situations like these are where OUSA should be stepping in, not sitting back.
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The end of reading week and the return to midterms and papers is never pleasant. However, the end of first week back from the break for Ontario universities was punctuated with a surprise from the provincial government. With the release of the budget for the upcoming year, the province introduced a free tuition policy for low-income students.
According to the budget, students from families with a collective annual income of $50,000 or less are entitled to a grant that covers the average cost of tuition in Ontario. “If you're a student coming from a low-income family and you're paying average or below-average tuition, that's where that free tuition designation comes from,” explained Spencer Nestico-Semianiw, VP (Education) of the MSU, and President of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance. For university students, that grant is worth a little over $6,000 a year while college students will see a grant of around $2,000.
The money required to fund this initiative is already being used within the postsecondary education sector. The government is repurposing several smaller grants, including the Ontario Student Opportunity Grant, the Ontario Student Access Grant and the 30 percent off tuition grant. However, the majority of the funding comes from the elimination of the tuition and education tax credit, something OUSA has advocated for over the course of the last decade.
“That was something that we are absolutely ecstatic about because we're now using the money that was previously used for tax credits, which wasn't up-front, it was going more towards higher-income families and students who didn't need it and so now the money's being repackaged and put into the hands of students who need it most,” said Nestico-Semianiw.
For long-term advocates of affordable tuition, the new budget marks a significant victory.
“These were recommendations that OUSA has clearly had in our policy papers for a number of years and we've seen a large number of those recommendations in this budget … For any student that was benefitting under the 30 percent off tuition grant previously, they are still going to be receiving at least the same amount of money now and the students who need it the most are going to be benefitting even more,” explained Nestico-Semianiw. He added that the OUSA’s advocacy week in December launched a renewed interest in discussing tuition in the province.
Despite the perks, the free tuition plan has left many skeptical. Some articles published misleading headlines implying the total erasure of tuition, and others raised the concern that the constant inflation of tuition means that the $6,000 calculation will likely be inaccurate just a few years into the future. The calculation of the grant also only considers the base price of tuition. Universities and colleges require students to pay mandatory fees beyond the cost of classes, including books, student union membership fees and living expenses.
Additionally, the new grant is calculated based on the average tuition for students in general arts and science programs, meaning thousands of students, such as those in engineering programs whose parents make less than $50,000, might still have to cover some of their own tuition depending on the amount of money they are granted.
“These were recommendations that OUSA has clearly had in our policy papers for a number of years and we've seen a large number of those recommendations in this budget."
Despite the concerns that have been raised, Nestico-Semianiw stressed his excitement over the policy changes. “To be completely frank they're absolutely fantastic,” he said. “Obviously [OUSA is] going to continue working with the government to make sure that tuition is affordable for students and that it doesn't outpace what we've seen in this budget … [but] I'm optimistic that we'll be able to work so that the next tuition framework doesn't lessen the impact of these changes but that's a conversation that still has to happen.”
While the new tuition policy is something for OUSA to be proud of, work remains to be done. The organization is currently occupied with helping the Ontario government finalize the specifics of the new grant. This will be followed up by more work on the new tuition framework, a task OUSA began to work on in January — a letter-writing campaign asking for a tuition freeze was one of their first advocacy efforts related to the framework.
For his part, Nestico-Semianiw thinks these are positive changes and hopes that his successors in the organization will continue to advocate for affordable tuition. “I think this opens up another very good conversation, but I think the next student executive will have to have those conversations too.”
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On Thursday, Sept. 17, the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance visited the McMaster campus as part of their larger promotional efforts in member schools across the province.
OUSA’s visit to campus gave The Silhouette a chance to discuss its priorities for the year with Spencer Nestico-Semianiw, VP (Education) of the MSU and OUSA’s president, and Sean Madden, the organization’s Executive Director.
Every year, OUSA releases policy papers on six post-secondary education topics in Ontario that dictate the organization’s lobbying and advocacy on the specific issues. For the 2015-16 year, OUSA will focus on teaching assessment and student success.
However, OUSA’s priorities this year extend beyond the annual policy papers. In addition to the policy papers, the organization’s research and advocacy efforts will also be put into the timely topics of university funding and the province’s tuition framework.
Last month, OUSA released its submission on the university funding formula for the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. The MTCU launched consultations on modernizing the formula in May 2015.
The funding formula determines how the provincial government distributes funding to individual universities.
Among other recommendations, OUSA’s submission criticizes the current formula for ignoring demographic shifts, failing to enhance differentiation and not reflecting true relative costs of education.
Speaking to the true cost of education, Semianiw believes that the province’s basic income units– which reflect the idea that the cost of educating different students in different programs varies– are out of date.
“A lot of the changes that we’ve seen in terms of how programs are getting funded isn’t so much reflective of the actual cost of the program,” said Semianiw.
“Institutions on an individual basis have found ways to transfer funds and make sure it’s working but from a provincial standpoint, that system needs to be re-evaluated.”
OUSA is also advocating for a higher proportion of the funding given to universities reserved for specific initiatives that enhance student life.
“I don’t want to throw any of the fine people who run universities under the bus, but it’s kind of no coincidence that the amount of money that’s spent on salaries and benefits is pretty much exactly the amount of money that the government doesn’t strictly set aside for other purposes,” said Madden.
“We want to add a little more accountability and transparency and limit the proportions that are unrestricted without being unreasonable.”
Madden noted that the current funding formula erroneously rewards enrolment growth, when in fact, the province has reached its peak enrolment rates and many universities are and will continue to be under-enrolled according to the principle.
Overall, like the province, OUSA wants to see a funding formula that is up to date with current demands and focuses on bettering the student experience.
The conversation on the province’s tuition framework, however, has not officially begun. The framework is due to be reviewed in the 2016-17 academic year, but Semianiw is attempting to lay the groundwork for the topic during his yearlong mandate.
“Universities are allowed to increase tuition three percent on average [per year] per institution. Five percent for some programs. We want to see a fully funded freeze. We don’t want to see tuition keep increasing for students,” said Semianiw.
Madden says that the results of the funding formula consultation will have a direct impact on the tuition framework conversation.
“The funding formula is going to control the way funding flows. If it magically it gets more efficient, we can make an argument for lower tuition. If it constrains the amount of flexible money they have, then that’s going to impact their costs.”
Photo Credit: Spencer Nestico-Semianiw
On May 16, 2015, Spencer Nestico-Semianiw, the MSU’s Vice-President (Education), was elected President of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance at the organization’s Transition Conference. The Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) represents students from seven universities in Ontario, including all full-time undergraduate students at McMaster.
Nestico-Semianiw previously served as OUSA’s research intern in the summer of 2014, and the MSU’s External Affairs commissioner before being elected as VP (Education) in April.
His duties as OUSA President will involve acting as the chief spokesperson of the organization, chairing the steering committee meetings composed of VP (Education) equivalents from all member schools, and representing the organization to media, the government, and other stakeholders.
Nestico-Semianiw says that increased internal advocacy support within the MSU will help balance the increased commitment to external advocacy as OUSA President.
“With some of the past VP (Education) there’s always that discussion of internally and externally-confused. This year we’re fortunate to have much more internal support with new research assistants that will be hired and an increase in [Advocacy Street Team] hours… I’ll be going to Toronto several times a month for meetings and working with [OUSA] home office. The time commitment is essentially more for travel and attending meetings.”
In his new role, he wants to continue the work of Jen Carter, his predecessor, by building consensus within OUSA’s member schools on issues pertinent to Ontario undergraduate students.
“It’s something that Jen did last year that gained a lot of positive reception. You’re the President, but the fact is that this is OUSA, and it’s not Western’s lobby group or Mac’s lobby group. The spirit that she took and I think I’ll be taking as well is making sure that all schools feel that they are satisfying what their students want.”
Tuition is one of the most topical advocacy points for undergraduate students across the province and at McMaster. Ehima Osazuwa, the MSU’s current President, was elected on a platform that included the creation of a task force that examines tuition advocacy options.
According to OUSA’s Tuition Brief, tuition in Ontario has increased by $2,658 in the past decade, whereas an increase consistent with inflation would have only amounted to $766. Ontario has the highest tuition fees in Canada, and they continue to rise at three percent every year for undergraduate students.
Nestico-Semianiw believes that the goals of the MSU’s Tuition Task Force are in line with OUSA’s advocacy.
“In the tuition policy that OUSA releasted this year, the principles and recommendations are essentially for a tuition freeze for the 2016-2017 year. This is what Ehima will be advocating and what our stance will be this year as well.
“Tuition assistance is very topical, even the funding formula is another big thing the province is engaging with this year. My goal is to talk to other VPs (Education) and see what their goals are,” said Nestico-Semianiw.
Although discussions about a tuition freeze will also be carried out internally with the university, Nestico-Semianiw believes that the bigger goal is provincial funding.
“We could always have this discussion between student unions and the university, but I truly do believe that when it comes to the university… if we’re asking for a tuition freeze, the money is just not there. We need to ensure we’re not high-fiving and student services are being cut because there’s now this lack of revenue. The main goal is to be able to use OUSA as a vehicle to advocate for increased funding from the province for more affordable education,” he said
As for next steps, Nestico-Semianiw will start by reaching out to other schools.
“The approach very much has to depend on what our schools want to see because, as I said, I ran for president because I did believe that this is something that our students wanted and that this was the time for us to do that, but it’s not just the MSU’s OUSA.”
“I did get the sense at TransCon that [tuition] is a priority for many of our schools, and figuring out how we want to advocate to the province.”
The Ontario Liberals announced on Jan. 20 that they are extending the ‘30 per cent off’ tuition grant eligibility to cover about 5,000 more students.
Co-op students in their final year of a five-year program and students in private postsecondary institutions who qualify for the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) are now also eligible for a 30 per cent off rebate on their tuition.
“For co-op students, while their program lasts five years [instead of four], a good part of that is taken up by work experience. When the 30-off tuition program was originally constituted, this was kind of an anomaly that was determined afterwards,” said Brad Duguid, minister of training, colleges and universities.
In spite of the expanded eligibility requirements, provincial student lobbying groups have pointed out perceived shortcomings of the program.
After the announcement, the Canadian Federation of Students – Ontario released a statement saying they do not support the extension of the grant to students in private career colleges and institutions.
“The issue is that the government is funding private institutions rather than prioritizing public postsecondary education and making it more affordable,” said Anna Goldfinch, national executive representative for the CFS-Ontario.
Goldfinch expressed concern over the ministry’s oversight of private career colleges, referencing public scrutiny over the ministry’s enforcement of the Private Career Colleges Act. In 2009, for instance, the Ontario Ombudsman’s office found that the ministry had “inadequate oversight” of Bestech Academy Inc. The owner had falsely advertised the academy as a registered private career college.
The CFS-Ontario maintains that while the expansion of the grant could help 5,000 more students, the funds would be better allocated to institutions’ operating grants toward a 30 per cent reduction of tuition over three years.
Duguid said the Ontario government is committed to providing targeted funding to lower-middle income students in the form of financial assistance.
“We want the funding that we’re providing to lower-middle income students to go directly to those students, rather than the institutions. That’s what’s important about the 30 off grant,” Duguid said.
Spencer Graham, vice-president (education) for the MSU and a member of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance’s steering committee, said he was surprised the government would extend the grant eligibility to students in private career colleges. However, he said OUSA still supports the expansion of the grant.
“OUSA believes increases to base operating budgets is important and that remains a priority for us. That doesn’t mean we’re coming out against the increased Ontario tuition grant eligibility, because it does help students. It’s not necessarily an either-or,” Graham said.
OUSA continues to lobby for expansion of the tuition grant. The grant currently covers students who attend college or university up to four years after they graduate from high school, and those in a five-year co-op program.
“That policy serves as a barrier to a number of students who attend postsecondary education after the four years after high school are up,” Graham said.
“Particularly this speaks to students who have dependents and children. We also see that Aboriginal learners tend to wait a number of years before entering postsecondary education. The grant doesn’t cover those two types of students, who face particular barriers,” he said.
OUSA’s pre-budget submission to the Ontario government also recommends that the grant should offer 35 per cent off tuition, up from 30 per cent.
Currently, eligible students can save $1,730 in tuition on average for degree programs and $790 for diploma or certificate programs. The deadline to apply for the grant for the winter semester is March 1, 2014. According to the Ontario government, 230,000 students received the tuition grant last year. About 310,000 were eligible before the expansion of the program.
This article was originally published on the Canadian University Press's newswire.
