By Kristianne Hendricks (SUS VP Academic) – Email
Print Edition: May 22, 2013
Since the 1920s, Canada has had a history of students organizing to create political change. Today, we have a few major options. As advocacy is one of the key aspects to the VP Academic position, I’m presently writing after a full day of information sessions presented by the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA). The sun is setting over Ottawa, and when it rises in the morning, I’ll head back downstairs for another jam-packed day, along with Shane Potter, UFV’s SUS president.
When I started my role in April, one question I was commonly confronted with was “What is advocacy?” At CASA, advocacy is directed at the federal government, which raises the question: isn’t education provincially-mandated?
The answer? Yes, but no. In the constitution, education legislation falls under provincial jurisdiction, but a major component of funding still comes from the federal government. There are $16 billion worth of federal programs aimed at education. These come through Canada Student Loans and Grants, through research organizations, through Aboriginal educations programs (which are solely managed at the national level) and through “provincial transfers,” which see the feds distributing money to the provinces. Provinces, on the other hand, deal with the establishing, regulation and accreditation of schools, as well as administering provincial loans.
With education costs rising five times faster than the rate of inflation, there is a very real need to advocate for education. The average cost for Canadian tuition in 2012/2013 registered at $5,581 – which means our fees at UFV fall well below the Canadian average (yay!). Still, the average student loan balance following completion of a degree is just under $13,000, and government cuts to education are likely to push that number higher.
These cuts are being felt across the nation, though governments are pointing to funds directed at skills training to deter our attention from the less-than-satisfactory funding going to universities. While I certainly applaud funds directed at skills training, as our trades, technology, and healthcare programs will likely benefit from this financial attention, I can’t help but wonder if the skills gained in the sciences and arts will be recognized in these programs.
“You can’t simply build a modern economy without investing in world-class research.” So said our honourable Prime Minister in September of 2011. The return on education is estimated at $3 for every $1 spent. So why isn’t the government investing more in education? I think it’s time that we bring this question to our MPs and MLAs, over and over. Let’s demand that education be viewed at the long-term investment in our economy that it really is.
