Author of the article: Jason Herring
Publishing date:Oct 29, 2021
University of Calgary students rallied against tuition hikes and budget cuts during the Student Day of Action on Friday, October 29, 2021.
Jason Herring/Postmedia
About 100 University of Calgary students braved a Friday afternoon snowstorm to protest post-secondary tuition hikes and budget cuts.
The rally, part of the provincewide ‘Student Day of Action’ campaign, comes the week after the U of C’s board of governors approved exceptional tuition increases of up to 32 per cent for some domestic students, which will take effect in fall 2022 pending government approval.
First-year international relations student Siraaj Shah was among speakers at the rally, held on the quad outside the MacEwan Student Centre. He said students are bearing the burden of provincial budget cuts through increased tuition rates.
“The reality is education is not a privilege, education is a human right,” Shah said.
“Why is it that I, as a student, have to be worried about my tuition being hiked before I’m even a student at this university? Before I even get an opportunity to stand and walk in these halls?”
Alberta’s United Conservative government has cut funding for advanced education in recent budgets, including by 1.4 per cent in its 2021 budget . That included a six per cent cut to the U of C’s operating budget, which is at its lowest amount since 2011.
Meanwhile, the U of C introduced a seven per cent tuition hike for most programs in 2020-21 and 2021-22 , the provincial maximum, with similar increases expected for the 2022-23 academic year.
The university is also taking a second shot at introducing exceptional tuition increases beyond the seven per cent cap for some domestic students, after the Ministry of Advanced Education previously rejected the hikes this summer, citing inadequate student consultation . The U of C resubmitted the proposed tuition hikes Friday following approval by its Board of Governors last week.
If approved, the hikes would increase tuition starting in fall 2022 for new graduate business administration, medical doctor and undergraduate engineering students, with a 32 per cent increase to the cost of the latter program.
The U of C said in a statement it believes its initial consultations with students were “robust” but was pleased to provide more opportunities for student feedback. A spokesperson for Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides confirmed the government had received the latest proposal for exceptional tuition increases.
Speaking at the campus protest Friday, organizer Mateusz Salmassi called on the province to introduce a tuition freeze and to reverse previous budget cuts. Students in attendance held signs with lines including ‘Stop the hikes’ and ‘Cut pumpkins, not budgets.'
About 100 University of Calgary students braved a Friday afternoon snowstorm to protest post-secondary tuition hikes and budget cuts.
The rally, part of the provincewide ‘Student Day of Action’ campaign, comes the week after the U of C’s board of governors approved exceptional tuition increases of up to 32 per cent for some domestic students, which will take effect in fall 2022 pending government approval.
First-year international relations student Siraaj Shah was among speakers at the rally, held on the quad outside the MacEwan Student Centre. He said students are bearing the burden of provincial budget cuts through increased tuition rates.
“The reality is education is not a privilege, education is a human right,” Shah said.
“Why is it that I, as a student, have to be worried about my tuition being hiked before I’m even a student at this university? Before I even get an opportunity to stand and walk in these halls?”
Alberta’s United Conservative government has cut funding for advanced education in recent budgets, including by 1.4 per cent in its 2021 budget . That included a six per cent cut to the U of C’s operating budget, which is at its lowest amount since 2011.
Meanwhile, the U of C introduced a seven per cent tuition hike for most programs in 2020-21 and 2021-22 , the provincial maximum, with similar increases expected for the 2022-23 academic year.
The university is also taking a second shot at introducing exceptional tuition increases beyond the seven per cent cap for some domestic students, after the Ministry of Advanced Education previously rejected the hikes this summer, citing inadequate student consultation . The U of C resubmitted the proposed tuition hikes Friday following approval by its Board of Governors last week.
If approved, the hikes would increase tuition starting in fall 2022 for new graduate business administration, medical doctor and undergraduate engineering students, with a 32 per cent increase to the cost of the latter program.
The U of C said in a statement it believes its initial consultations with students were “robust” but was pleased to provide more opportunities for student feedback. A spokesperson for Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides confirmed the government had received the latest proposal for exceptional tuition increases.
Speaking at the campus protest Friday, organizer Mateusz Salmassi called on the province to introduce a tuition freeze and to reverse previous budget cuts. Students in attendance held signs with lines including ‘Stop the hikes’ and ‘Cut pumpkins, not budgets.'
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University of Calgary students rallied against tuition hikes and budget cuts during the Student Day of Action on Friday, October 29, 2021. Jason Herring/Postmedia
Third-year physics student Quinn Rupert said post-secondary education is prohibitively expensive for some, particularly those who may have lost jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The amount they’re charging students is insane,” Rupert said. “There’s people who have to choose between buying food and paying rent and paying tuition. There’s incredibly bright students in various departments across the university who have had to consider or who maybe have dropped out already.”
That sentiment was echoed by second-year international relations student Allan Birkett, who argued the province and post-secondary institutions are taking advantage of students.
“These tuition hikes are starting to get egregious,” Birkett said. “We need a lot more investment and a lot more support from the government.”
Also attending the rally was Prachi Mishra, the vice-chair of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees Local 052, which represents support staff at the U of C.
She said the university has shed 600 full-term support staff alone due to recent budget cuts.
“This means people have lost their livelihoods. It means the workload has remained the same with less people to do it,” Mishra said, calling the Friday rally “an amazing start to a much bigger movement.”
In a statement, the U of C said it supports “respectful free speech” and looks forward “to continuing our conversations with our campus community” on tuition.
Laurie Chandler, press secretary to Nicolaides, said in an email the minister is “open to hearing ideas about how we can balance funding to institutions and manage tuition increases, all within the context of limited government resources.”
jherring@postmedia.com
Third-year physics student Quinn Rupert said post-secondary education is prohibitively expensive for some, particularly those who may have lost jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The amount they’re charging students is insane,” Rupert said. “There’s people who have to choose between buying food and paying rent and paying tuition. There’s incredibly bright students in various departments across the university who have had to consider or who maybe have dropped out already.”
That sentiment was echoed by second-year international relations student Allan Birkett, who argued the province and post-secondary institutions are taking advantage of students.
“These tuition hikes are starting to get egregious,” Birkett said. “We need a lot more investment and a lot more support from the government.”
Also attending the rally was Prachi Mishra, the vice-chair of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees Local 052, which represents support staff at the U of C.
She said the university has shed 600 full-term support staff alone due to recent budget cuts.
“This means people have lost their livelihoods. It means the workload has remained the same with less people to do it,” Mishra said, calling the Friday rally “an amazing start to a much bigger movement.”
In a statement, the U of C said it supports “respectful free speech” and looks forward “to continuing our conversations with our campus community” on tuition.
Laurie Chandler, press secretary to Nicolaides, said in an email the minister is “open to hearing ideas about how we can balance funding to institutions and manage tuition increases, all within the context of limited government resources.”
jherring@postmedia.com
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