OUSA

The excitement is continuing to build here at the OUSA office as the final preparations are completed for our sixth annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner, set to take place this Wednesday, March 31 at the Sutton Place Hotel. The home office staff (especially Alvin) has been working very hard to make sure that this year’s dinner continues in the tradition of success.

It is clear from the program and list of attendees that we are all in for a spectacular evening. Guests will include students, faculty, administrators, bureaucrats, politicians, political staff, researchers, and many other partners from inside and outside the higher education sector.

During the dinner, attendees will have the pleasure of hearing from influential figures in Ontario’s higher education system, starting with the Honourable John Milloy, Minister of Training Colleges and Universities. After addressing the guests, the Minister will stay to hand out plaques to this year’s recipients of the OUSA Award for Excellence in Teaching.

Dr. Joy Mighty and Dr. Julia Christensen Hughes, the current and past Presidents of the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, respectively, will be giving the keynote address on issues in teaching and learning. They have just published a book entitled Taking Stock: Research on Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, and rather than lecture the attendees, they plan to incorporate new forms of teaching pedagogy into their address.

Finally, this year’s Partners Dinner will mark OUSA’s 15th year of incorporation. A video presentation has been devised to give guests a taste of OUSA’s history, and three of OUSA’s most distinguished alumni will be granted honourary memberships to mark the occasion.

As I said, attendees are in for a spectacular evening.

Justin Williams
Vice President Education
Federation of Students at the University of Waterloo

March 29, 2010

At 10AM this morning, the Ontario government answered the question that has been on students’ minds for months: What does the end of the Reaching Higher Plan and the largest deficit in Ontario’s history mean for tuition, financial aid, and the affordability of a higher education in Ontario?

As the dust settles, we can say with certainty that the outlook is positive, given the circumstances. The current tuition fee framework will be renewed for two more years, ensuring continued regulation of fees for domestic students at a maximum average increase of 5% across each institution. To balance these increases, the government is enhancing the financial aid system to the tune of $81 million through a package of reforms based directly on the recommendations of OUSA and our partner student organizations.

Included in this package are five changes OUSA requested in its submission to the government’s special secretariat last October, including:

-        Increasing weekly loan limits (from $140 to $150 per week),

-        Doubling the exemption on in-study income (from $50 to $103 per week),

-        Implementing a six-month interest-free grace period before loans must be repaid

-        Tying the maximum assessment for textbook and supplies costs to the rate of inflation

-        Implementing the more generous Repayment Assistance Plan, currently in use by the federal government

Other positive changes to the system, many of which have been supported by OUSA over the last few years, include:

-        $500 grant for part-time students

-        1,000 new graduate scholarships

-        Asset exemption for vehicles for married students

-        Spousal contributions reduced to align with federal assessment formula

-        Asking universities to automatically grant funds through the Student Access Guarantee, without forcing students to apply for an institutional bursary.

Looking at the cost-sharing model as a whole, it is concerning that the funding announced last week for 20,000 new seats at colleges and universities does not include new funds to keep up with inflationary costs or improve quality. Instead, tuition increases will again have to make up this shortfall and students will continue to pay a greater and greater percentage of university operating budgets, thus continuing the process of creeping privatization of higher education. And then there’s the exorbitant fees charged to undergraduate international students, which serve only to subsidize domestic students and replace public funding.

At the same time, as a student leader, today’s announcement demonstrates that the government does listen to student concerns and actively works to address them. After hours of discussion with bureaucrats, staffers, politicians, researchers, partner organizations and students, improvements have been made and students are better off. Of course, a great many challenges remain, but my faith in the process and in OUSA – from grassroots policy development to a respectful, collaborative advocacy strategy – has been reaffirmed.

While we pause to celebrate what has been achieved, tomorrow beckons and new solutions will be required for new problems. The government has indicated an interest in online learning and in increasing international enrollment, though how either of these will be achieved remains hazy. Students look forward to tackling these challenges, together with government and our partners, in the coming months and years.

So, while students are grateful for the government’s continued support, tomorrow is a new day and it brings new questions. To all those who toil in the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, thank you but don’t get to comfortable. The cries of “what have you done for us lately” will soon return…

Dan Moulton
OUSA President

From March 19 to 21, OUSA held its annual spring General Assembly, bringing together student leaders from across Ontario. Hosted by the University Students’ Council of the University of Western Ontario, students came to discuss the challenges facing higher education today and develop educated solutions to address them.

After three days of discussion, hard work and a number of late nights, the delegates passed new policies on assisting students with disabilities and the future of differentiated mandates at Ontario universities. Additions to OUSA’s student success policies were also approved, mostly focusing on internationalization and supporting the broader learning environment on campus.

Over many hours of breakout sessions, students discussed issues ranging from improving the OSAP need assessment formula to developing a blueprint for the recently announced Ontario Online Institute, to investigating potential new models of cost-recovery for the system.

OUSA welcomed the Honourable Chris Bentley, Attorney General, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and former Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, as the conference’s keynote speaker. The Minister gave a short address and answered questions from students for the better part of an hour. Also present was Liberal Party President and Ottawa MPP Yasir Naqvi, who engaged in a spirited discussion with student leaders over lunch.

Alex Usher of Higher Education Strategies Associates was also on hand to present the preliminary results of the Canadian Student Survey, a landmark initiative surveying over 21,000 Canadian students and undertaken this year by OUSA and its partners across the country.

OUSA would like to thank the volunteers at UWO for hosting us and for ensuring a very well organized weekend.

LINK TO FOOD FOR THOUGHT HOME PAGE

TORONTO, March 29 – For nearly three weeks, from March 8, 2010 to March 26, 2010, students at four Ontario universities undertook an experiment to eat a healthy, balanced diet while spending only $7.50 a day on food – the same amount allocated for food by the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP).

The “Food For Thought” campaign, organized by the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) ended its 19-day experiment over the weekend, with its participants relieved that the experiment was over. “Students living on a $7.50/day budget that is allocated by OSAP cannot afford to eat healthy…that is simply the bottom line,” said Nick Gibson of Wilfrid Laurier University. Sarah Baker of Queen’s University said “ I tried my best but unfortunately there was not a single day where I both stayed on budget and got all my servings in.”

The campaign was aimed at drawing attention to the fact that the OSAP need assessment uses a standard living allowance for every student adding up to $12,540 a year, which is about $3,000 less than the poverty line, effectively institutionalizing student poverty. “OSAP actually claws back the money you make while you’re in school,” said Rachel Crane, Brock University student, making it even more difficult for students to come up with the money to make ends meet. Crane added, “students do an excellent job on budgeting their finances, and have began to take out loans and use credit cards to make up for OSAP’s shortcomings.”

During an appearance on Canada AM, University of Western Ontario student Andrew Beach said, “we’re trying to get the government to give just a little bit more money, so that students get the opportunity to eat healthy.” Many students with dietary restrictions, medical conditions, varsity athletes, or who live on campus have much more difficult circumstances to get affordable and nutritious foods for themselves.

“I’m still standing after 19 days of really, really watching what I spent and what I ate, and I felt really stressed out at times,” said Rachel Crane.

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For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact: Alvin Tedjo, OUSA Director of Communications & Public Relations, work: (416) 341-9948, cell:  (647) 669-6885

READ TORONTO STAR ARTICLE

READ METRO NEWS ARTICLE

READ THE GLOBE & MAIL ARTICLE

READ WATERLOO RECORD ARTICLE

READ WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ARTICLE

TORONTO, March 29 /CNW/ – Acting directly on the recommendations of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA), the McGuinty government today announced a package of improvements to Ontario’s system of student financial aid that will increase the accessibility of higher education for those with the greatest need. The reforms touch on all aspects of the financial aid system, from fixing the need assessment formula, to increasing the amount of aid available, to enhancing the loan repayment process.

“These improvements represent a huge step forward for students relying on government aid to access higher education,“ said Dan Moulton, OUSA President. “Though entering a period of fiscal restraint, the government has indicated a continued willingness to provide students with the support they require.”

Last October, the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance presented a submission to the Ontario government requesting a number of specific improvements to the financial aid system. With this announcement, five of OUSA’s key recommendations will become reality, including:

-        Increasing weekly loan limits (from $140 to $150 per week),

-        Doubling the exemption on in-study income (from $50 to $103 per week),

-        Implementing a six-month interest-free grace period before loans must be repaid

-        Tying the maximum assessment for textbook and supplies costs to the rate of inflation

-        Implementing the more generous Repayment Assistance Plan, currently in use by the federal government

“Students appreciate that the government is listening to our concerns and working with us to address them,” added Moulton. “With these reforms, students will have access to more aid, enjoy a simplified application process, and receive increased government support during loan repayment.”

Additionally, the government has announced a two-year continuation of the current tuition framework, which caps average tuition increases at five per cent across each institution.

“The sustained regulation of tuition fees is promising; however, students in Ontario continue to pay the highest fees in the country,” said Alexi White, OUSA Executive Director. “We look forward to a continuing dialogue with the government on ensuring a fair cost-sharing model.”

The Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance represents the interests of over 140,000 professional and undergraduate, full- and part-time university students at seven Ontario institutions.

For a copy of OUSA’s submission, Ontario: A Province of Knowledge, CLICK HERE

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For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact Alvin Tedjo, OUSA Director of Communications & Public Relations, work: (416) 341-9948, cell: (647) 669-6885,
email: communications@ousa.on.ca

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Rachel's Grocery Trip

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Sarah's Home Cooked Food

Sarah's Food

Friday, March 26, 2010

This morning my stomach was still somewhat tender so I stuck with PB&J on toast.  I just had water to drink.  Then for lunch I had tomato soup with soda crackers.  The tomato soup was $0.99 and the milk I added was $0.31.  The crackers cost about $0.50.  I used a lot and mixed it all in.  Then for dinner I took another one of my mom’s recipes and made it up. Goulash!  Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

1 lrg tin diced tomatoes with herbs and spices (or add your own)

1 ½ cup uncooked macaroni

1 lb hamburger

1 pkge marble cheese

Instructions

Cook macaroni for 8 min and drain.  Cook hamburger and drain off fat.  Shred marble cheese.  Leave enough cheese for top of casserole and mix the rest with all other ingredients. Pour into large casserole dish and sprinkle remaining cheese over top.  Bake in oven at 400 F for 20-30 min.
My tomatoes had no spices so I added some garlic and basil, which cost about $0.05 together.  The tin of tomatoes cost $0.97.  The macaroni used was $0.53.  The hamburger cost $3.00.  And the cheese cost $4.00.  So the casserole in total cost $8.55 but it could hold me for four meals.  I only ate a quarter of it for dinner so that would be $2.14.  I also had a glass of V8 juice with it.  I then also had a glass of milk and a glass of V8 before going to bed.  So my total spending on what I ate today would be $6.58. I had 7 servings of vegetables, 5 servings of grains, 2 servings of dairy and 1 serving of meat.

So now that the food campaign is over I figured I would add up what I spent and what I could have spent. So the total money I was supposed to have for the Campaign was $142.50.  I spent $114.41.  I had 9 free meals over the course of the Campaign as well as a couple snacks that people gave me.  Also, I had 4 days on the campaign where I was sick, which usually affects my appetite. There was only one day where I got in all the servings that the Canada Food Guide says is healthy and that day I went almost $1.50 over budget.  So my conclusion:  Do I think it is possible to live a healthy balanced diet on only $7.50 a day? No.  I tried my best but unfortunately there was not a single day where I both stayed on budget and got all my servings in.  I also think it would be worse for guys as they are supposed to have even more servings than me.  Thank you everyone for reading my blogs.

Sarah Baker

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Last Blog:

Over the course of this campaign, several themes and patterns arose. One is the pattern of what I consumed on a daily basis. Every single day of the campaign I ate cereal for breakfast, most of the days I had some sort of derivative of pizza, and most of the days (though not as much as pizza) I had some sort of pasta (including KD). It made doing daily blogs difficult because I had nothing else to talk about other than the same meals everyday. However, such is the life for someone busy like I am and on a very restrictive budget such as I was during this campaign. One of the themes that arose during this campaign is the notion that healthy eating on a $7.50/day diet is not tangible. I alluded throughout the campaign that I was lacking in several areas in terms of daily nutrition; that came out in one of my blogs this week when I said that I was several servings short in 3 of the 4 food groups (especially veggies and fruits) on what I considered a pretty healthy day compared to my patterns lately. The last theme I alluded to was the notion that being an involved person on campus and trying to eat a healthy diet on a restrictive budget is simply not possible; when the cheapest meal on campus is pizza and that takes up nearly half of your budget for the cheapest kind of slice, you realize that it simply isnt possible. There are ways to try to save on food–but often, like I have mentioned, the free food is not that healthy or is even downright bad for you. So while you save money, you are often not helping out your body. Arguably, you may assert, one has more money now to use as a result of the free food–true, however you still consumed those calories of the unhealthy food (so you will not be eating the healthy food afterwards because you are satiated), and often your savings is not significant enough to afford a healthy option. It comes down to this: students living on a $7.50/day budget that is allocated by OSAP cannot afford to eat healthy…that is simply the bottom line. The time invested in trying to minimize your spending on food becomes prohibitive at a point where you are taking away from academic time and other important pursuits. Even then, with that invested time, it is difficult to make it within the $7.50/day threshold.

So despite keeping within my daily allotted budget throughout this campaign, I do not feel very good about it. I know that my body deserves better and I know that if I had eaten healthier throughout this time I would have been more productive in school, sports, extra-curriculars and even my social life. Students should not be expected to take on this unnecessary stress during 4 very important years of their development. I am not saying that tough times do not build character; adversity is important, but do not leave the student in a de facto situation that leaves them below the poverty line. That does not allow for students to pursue and reach their full potential during their university experience.

I would like to thank everyone for tuning into this blog and I hope you have had the opportunity to reflect on what is a very important issue for OSAP-receiving students. Should you want to know more about my experience throughout the campaign, before it, or even well beyond the end, do not hesitate to contact me. Intelligent dialogue and discourse about the real experiences of students is how we will be able to find a way to make this situation better. OUSA has proposed several solutions to these problems and we hope that people give them a real look to ensure that we can solve the problem–our educational institutions ar the key to our future prosperity!

P.S. if you really wanted to know, I had cereal/yogourt/banana for b-fast, a slice of pizza for lunch, and free food at a “volunteer appreciation” for dinner…

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Thursday Blog:

Yesterday was a great day as I noted in my blog yesterday. It really made my day today seem uneventful, and certainly made me want to stay in bed a bit longer! haha…in terms of my diet today, I once again had cereal, yogourt, and a banana for breakfast, pizza for lunch, and KD with frozen veggies. Again, like I pointed out yesterday, my food guide requirements were missed yet again quite dramatically. This is a theme that is salient throughout this campaign for me. It really has forced me to become very poised to work hard to make sure that policies change so that so many students do not have to live through this any longer…