Windsor Students respond to Ontario government’s proposed 10 per cent tuition cuts

 

University and college students in Windsor say they worry about changes to OSAP (Ontario Students Assistance Program) by the provincial government, that could lead to possible struggles in debt payment.

The proposed tuition changes will also eliminate free tuition for low-income students and families earning less than $50,000 per year will only qualify for a portion of the funding which they will receive as a loan.

University of Windsor students and graduates held a rally on Thurs. Jan. 24, protesting changes to the provincial program that makes it easier for students to afford post-secondary education.

“We are outraged that he (Doug Ford’s government) has decided that it is not worth it to fund our education. We are outraged that he is cutting the budgets of universities across the province by an overall four per cent which here in Windsor means a $10 million cut to our institutional funding,” said Angela Zhu, one of the organizers of the rally.

The recent announcement made by the Ford government has received widespread criticism for making policies favouring affluent students. Activist Bree Arbor said she is supporting and attending the rally on behalf of all those students who drop out of universities because they cannot afford it.

“Our long-term goals are not just to overcome these recent cuts to OSAP but to actually advocate for a totally free education and a more democratic university,” said Arbor.

Merrilee Fullerton, minister of training, colleges and universities announced on Jan. 17,  the average domestic college student will be saving $340 per year and university undergraduates will be saving between $600 to $1,000 for the 2019-20 academic year.

However, colleges and universities will have to decide in terms what they need to do to change, adapt and innovate to cope with the recent cut, said Fullerton.

The 10 per cent tuition cut would take about $360 million away from universities and $80 million from colleges.

St. Clair College will be losing over $3 million as a part of their revenue collected from student tuition, said vice-president of College Communications and Community Relations, John Fairley.

“What we are more worried about is the selection of what students want to pick and choose from our student governments,” said Fairley, “Whether it’s

our Student Representative Council here in Windsor and downtown Windsor campus or TSI which is the corporate student government in our Chatham campus. So, we are worried because a lot of the things they do is a part of the student experience.”

Fullerton also announced on Thursday, that students can choose which organizations their tuition fee will go towards, with the exception of health, sports and safety programs.

St. Clair College student Tori Roovers said if SRC is not getting the coverage it deserves from the provincial government, then it will be very tricky for students to enjoy proper representation and college experience.

“It’s frustrating to say the least. It’s very frustrating, but right now what can you do, except to roll with the punches,” said Roovers.