TORONTO/CNW/March 8 – Beginning today, students at four Ontario universities will undertake a three-week experiment: They will attempt 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).
Entitled “Food For Thought”, the experiment will be co-ordinated by the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA). Participants will blog and video blog on their experiences at www.ousa.ca/foodforthought.
The OSAP need assessment uses a standard living allowance for every student living away from home. It totals $34.72 per day, of which $7.50 is allocated to food costs and the rest is meant for shelter, public transit, and miscellaneous expenses. Over the course of a year, this living allowance is $3,000 less than the poverty line for a city of over 100,000 people.
“Given that OSAP expects students to live below the poverty line, I expect our participants will have a great deal of difficulty eating a healthy, balanced diet,” said OUSA President Dan Moulton. “I hope the results of this experiment will convince the provincial and federal governments to fix the broken OSAP assessment formula and end the institutionalization of student poverty.”
Taking part in the experiment are students from Wilfrid Laurier University, Queen’s University, the University of Western Ontario, and Brock University.
A number of organizations dedicated to poverty and social justice issues have pledged their support, including the Council of Canadians, Canada Without Poverty, and university food banks across the Province.
[...] Today OUSA launched its Food for Thought Campaign, aimed at creating awareness of OSAP’s deficiencies in its funding and need assessment formula. The Toronto Star wrote a piece that appeared on the front page an in the Greater Toronto section. You can read the article below or on the Toronto Star site HERE. You can also read OUSA’s Press Release on the campaign’s launch HERE. [...]
This has been an issue for some time now. Our deficiencies in financial aid have most certainly fallen on deaf ears.
I enrolled in a 2yr college program that will allow me to bridge into a 3rd and 4th yr undergrad degree program. My total OSAP loan eligibility is $11,500. My entitlement was $9,651/yr. My math calculates: $804.25/mth. The food budget of $7.50/day x 7 days for a total of 210.00 leaves 595.25/mth for neccessities; rent and transit.
Ontario is not in the black, it is in the red danger zone for students. Perhaps the deaf ears will perk up next provincial election.