OUSA

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September is here, signalling the beginning of another school year for over 450,000 university students across the province. On campuses all over Ontario, excitement for the year is building, with this week welcoming new students with orientation week activities and fall semester classes beginning in only a couple of days.

It has been a busy summer for OUSA, having furthered the discussion and awareness on a number of important issues including the prevalence of financial aid illiteracy among students, the significance of student support programs contributing to student success, and students increasingly funding a greater proportion of university operating budgets.

Additionally, over the past couple months OUSA’s policy and advocacy efforts have focused on many of our priorities, including international students’ need for specialized support and resources, deferred maintenance of our university campuses, a review of an Ontario wide survey ranking students’ priorities, and students’ vision for the Ontario Online Institute to be created this year.

In August, we had the privilege of welcoming Dr. Grace Lynch, a Senior Project Manager at Open Universities Australia, to make a presentation at a Conversation on Post-Secondary Online Education, hosted by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities and the Ministry of Education. With support from the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) and the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), OUSA arranged the visit to learn from Dr. Lynch’s extensive experience. This was a great opportunity to understand a successful online consortium model, and consider how these best practices can be incorporated into the design of the Ontario Online Institute.

This year promises to be one of change and renewal within the post-secondary sector, and we are looking forward to contributing to the direction of PSE in Ontario. From our perspective, the next twelve months hold immense potential of moving towards ensuring and enhancing a high quality post-secondary education system in Ontario, as we continue to strive to offer our students the opportunities they deserve.

-Meaghan Coker

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With the beginning of the fall semester just over a month away, OUSA has been busy preparing for the coming school year.
In July, OUSA had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Thomas Carey, a Professor at the University of Waterloo in the Management Sciences Department and currently a Visiting Senior Scholar in the area of Knowledge Mobilization for Exemplary Teaching and Learning at HEQCO (Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario). Dr. Carey shared valuable information on the most prominent examples of online teaching and learning models, in addition to the prospective research themes that HECQO will be examining in the coming months for the Ontario Online Institute.

Additionally, OUSA was invited to take part in a day of discussions with the Canadian Publishers’ Council. This offered an interactive environment where students and publishers’ were able to highlight areas of aligned values, while continuing to express the diverging perspectives between students and textbook publishers’.

Later in August, OUSA will be attending the Partnership Conference hosted by CASA (Canadian Alliance of Student Associations) in Ottawa. This conference has always offered a unique opportunity for the provincial alliances, including NBSA (New Brunswick Student Alliance), ANSSA (Alliance of Nova Scotia Student Associations), and CAUS (Council of Alberta University Students) to meet and discuss the priorities of each other and potential for coordination on issues. This year’s conference will be focusing more explicitly on understanding the framework and effects of a new model for federal representation of student alliances.

Lastly, having determined the direction for this year at last month’s Strategic Planning Conference, we have been focused on developing the Action Plan for the year, coordinating our research and policy initiatives, advocacy priorities, and communications strategies. In assessing OUSA’s plans for 2010-2011, it is a year that is budding with potential and will be bursting with activity. With the strong commitment from our membership and relationships with our partners, there are great possibilities of moving towards ensuring and enhancing a high quality post-secondary education system, one that offers our students the opportunities they deserve.

-Meaghan Coker

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In complement to the summer heat rising, OUSA’s brainstorming and planning for the coming year has taken a dramatic upswing! Having just wrapped up our 4 day Strategic Planning Conference, the Steering Committee and Home Office Staff are returning with a renewed sense of direction for the year ahead.
This planning process provided the ideal opportunity for us to all come together and discuss OUSA’s policy and advocacy priorities. At the forefront of our minds, we envisioned how OUSA can contribute to creating a more accessible, affordable, accountable, and high quality system of post-secondary education in the Province of Ontario.

This year, OUSA plans to promote the importance of student success and further define the aspects that it comprises, including striving to improve teaching quality, offering enhanced support services, and providing engaging learning environments.  Also, we have reaffirmed our commitment to realizing additional student financial assistance as it continues to be one of the highest priorities for students, and is critical to addressing the accessibility and persistence of students at a post-secondary level.

It is extremely motivating to see the potential that can come from the ideas developed over the past several days. We are all looking forward to the exciting opportunities for growth at OUSA, in our advocacy, our research, and our continued commitment to post-secondary education in Ontario.

This upcoming year holds much promise. Over the next twelve months, we will have the opportunity to contribute to the ongoing discussions on issues including quality enhancements, improving teaching and learning, implementing the Province’s internationalization strategy, and expanding early outreach initiatives in Ontario. I am very enthused about the potential for this upcoming year to engage with our membership and partners in the sector and continue to explore our shared vision for an accessible, affordable, accountable and high-quality post-secondary education in Ontario.

-Meaghan Coker

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After a dynamic transition conference week at OUSA, the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance is ready to take on another year, with eight motivated Steering Committee members and a new Executive.

I am pleased to have been elected President for the 2010-2011 year and inspired to be working with such talented student leaders from across our OUSA member student associations.

I want to extend my sincere appreciation and congratulations to the outgoing President Dan Moulton, the supporting Executive, and Steering Committee. The leadership you provided and the achievements you worked for this past year have carved a path for us to follow and have truly made a difference in the lives of students across Ontario.

Also, I would like to extend my gratitude to the guest speakers who presented at the OUSA Transition Conference this past week, including representatives from the Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities, the Council of Ontario Universities, the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations, the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario, and the College Student Alliance. Your dedication and contribution is appreciated.

This upcoming year holds much promise. Over the next twelve months, we will have the opportunity to contribute to the ongoing discussions on issues including quality enhancements, improving teaching and learning, implementing the Province’s internationalization strategy, and expanding early outreach initiatives in Ontario. I am very enthused about the potential for this upcoming year to engage with our membership and partners in the sector and continue to explore our shared vision for an accessible, affordable, accountable and high-quality post-secondary education in Ontario.

-Meaghan Coker

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April and May mark my last months as OUSA President and this will be my last message for the communiqué. I wish to take this chance to thank everyone who has contributed to OUSA in the past year. And what a year it’s been!

From the approval of OUSA’s new Long-Term Plan, the overhaul of OUSA’s website, our successful “Food for Thought” campaign, another strong Partners in Higher Education Dinner, and shared advocacy successes, much has been accomplished in the past year.

Most importantly, OUSA had an incredibly successful year in advocacy, policy development and government relations. Our submission to the Post-Secondary Education Secretariat, entitled ”Ontario A Province of Knowledge”, translated into true action through a significant investment in Student Financial Assistance and reform to the OSAP program; almost all of which was directly taken from the recommendations of OUSA.

These accomplishments are a true credit to a dynamic team of leaders at OUSA in the 2009-2010 academic year. Our Steering Committee, Home Office staff, and  all of our partners and students contributed a great deal of energy and leadership to to the Alliance; and our successes are a testament to their commitment.

To my fellow Vice-Presidents on the Steering Committee, thank you all for your tireless work on behalf of the students of Ontario. From your high-level research and policy work to your outstanding ability as advocates for our students, you never ceased to impress me throughout the year.

To our tenacious Home Office staff, thank you for always going above and beyond the call of duty. The long hours, hard work and dedication you have put into OUSA this past year has not gone unnoticed. You are the driving force behind the day-to-day operations of the Alliance, and the strength of our policy and research, communications and government relations is directly attributed to your commitment. Thank you so much, and good luck in the coming year as you build upon the successes of the past.

To our partners in government and throughout the sector, thank you for your unrelenting commitment to building a stronger system, and a brighter future for the students and citizens of this province. Your dedication to this goal does not go unnoticed by the students this system serves.

Thank you to all the student leaders of OUSA for allowing me to serve at your President this past year. It has been an honour and privilege, and I could not have done it without you! Together we have done our part to ensure the strength of this Alliance into the years ahead. Ensuring OUSA will continue to think critically, plan strategically, and develop meaningful solutions to challenges facing the Post-Secondary system in Ontario.

-Dan Moulton

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After another year of strong advocacy on behalf of the undergraduate students of Ontario, OUSA can be very satisfied with the results of the recent 2010 Provincial Budget and the accompanying announcements on tuition and financial aid. Not only did the government allocate over $300 million to fund the growth of our colleges and universities, it also announced an $81 million package of changes to financial aid, directly addressing a number of long-standing student concerns.

From the beginning of the year, we at OUSA have focused our advocacy on the link between post-secondary education and a prosperous and competitive Ontario. This initiative culminated in the December release of an OUSA research paper entitled Ontario’s Knowledge Economy: The Economic Impact of Post-Secondary Education. Joining us on this project were our partners at the Council of Ontario Universities, the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations, the Institute for Competitiveness and Prosperity, the Ontario Association of Food Banks, and the Ontario Chamber of Commerce. The paper was circulated throughout government, most notably to the bureaucracy in the Ministry of Finance and to MPPs of all political stripes.

With the government’s announcement that they will continue to invest in post-secondary education – to the tune of $310 million next year – we can be confident that our message was accepted. Considering the record deficits facing Ontario, a new investment of this size is remarkable.

Adding to this success was the government’s recent announcement of an $81 million package of changes to financial aid. Over half of these changes were included in OUSA’s financial aid submission from last fall, demonstrating again OUSA’s unparalleled leadership on core student issues.

I also wish to report that OUSA’s sixth annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner was a tremendous success. The dinner brought together students, faculty, administrators, bureaucrats, politicians, researchers and many other education stakeholders to discuss important issues facing post-secondary education. To open the evening, the Honourable John Milloy, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities addressed the guests. Following him, Dr. Joy Mighty and Dr. Julia Christensen Hughes of the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education delivered the keynote address on the need to improve teaching and learning on Ontario’s universities. It was a fantastic way to end OUSA’s 15th year as a leading voice for the students of Ontario.

Finally, I’m pleased to announce that OUSA has selected Sam Andrey, a recent graduate of the University of Waterloo, as our new Director of Research and Policy Analysis. Sam brings with him many years of experience working with OUSA at the campus level and a keen interest in improving the experience of all undergraduate students in Ontario. Welcome, Sam, we’re lucky to have you.

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As students across the Province return from reading week, all eyes are focused on the provincial budget to be tabled in March. Early indications are that the government will be emphasizing issues of accountability, credit transfer, e-learning and international student enrollment. At the same time, the government seems to be considering announcing one-year stopgap funding for the sector, thus delaying a long-term funding announcement until next year.

Looking ahead, OUSA is gearing up for a Spring General Assembly at the University of Western Ontario. Student leaders from across our institutions will meet to discuss student priorities and debate a new long-term plan for the organization.

Following that, OUSA will host its annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner. I’m pleased to announce that Dr. Joy Mighty, President of the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, and Dr. Julia Christensen Hughes, Dean of Business at the University of Guelph, will give the keynote address on issues in teaching and learning, based on a groundbreaking book they have recently co-authored.

Finally, on behalf of everyone at OUSA, I’d like to wish Paul, our outgoing Director of Research and Policy Analysis, all the best in his future endeavours. His commitment and dedication to OUSA will be sadly missed. Good luck, Paul!

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January saw significant developments in a number of OUSA’s ongoing projects. Most notably, the annual Blue Chair Campaign was a great success at our campuses across Ontario, shedding much needed light on issues of accessibility and early intervention.

With the release of the Provincial budget just around the corner, OUSA continued its advocacy push with a number of presentations to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs. We were also happy to receive an endorsement of our financial aid recommendations from the Ontario Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.

Finally, I was pleased to accept an invitation from the Honourable John Milloy, Minster of Training, Colleges and Universities, to join him at the head table for his speech to the Canadian Club of Toronto on January 18.  The Minister’s remarks largely focused on where we’ve come in the five years since the Honourable Bob Rae presented his review of the post-secondary education system in Ontario. He stressed the vast increases in enrollment seen under the McGuinty government and the significant improvements to financial aid provided through the expiring Reaching Higher Plan.  For the future, the Minister stressed accountability and credit transfer as important files. Unfortunately, while all the perennial issues were touched on, the Minister said very little on the issue of quality of education, in the past or the future.

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Students are returning to classes after the winter break and that can only mean one thing: It’s time for the annual Blue Chair Campaign. Across OUSA’s seven campuses, students will work together to raise awareness and funds for access and early outreach for students looking to attend post-secondary education.  We will also be focusing on financial access through student financial aid awareness.  Make sure to catch your campus’ Blue Chair Campaign, throughout the month of January.

With a new year stretching before us, the question on everyone’s mind is will 2010 be a good year for post-secondary education in Ontario? With a government budget coming in March, we won’t have to wait long for an answer. OUSA will continue to build on recent success and will push the government for necessary change right up until a budget is delivered.

Educated Solutions is OUSA’s annual magazine sent out to our members and partners with articles from students, faculty, staff, and stakeholders. Educated Solutions is currently in its 6th volume and is a professional and valuable tool in OUSA’s messaging strategy. The magazine has grown over the years and has included submissions from Minister Malloy, university presidents Chakma, Williams, and Lightstone, as well as James Downey the President and CEO of the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario. We are always looking for contributors to the magazine; if you are interested, please email our Director of Communications.