TORONTO - Today, the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) released Issue 15 of its annual magazine, Educated Solutions. This year's edition focuses on how inequities in post-secondary education affect a variety of student populations and offers suggestions for how the sector can improve equity initiatives.
“When it comes to post-secondary education, being a fourth year student during the height of the pandemic showed me a number of weaknesses within our education system.” said Eunice Oladejo, President of OUSA and Vice-President External Affairs of the University Students’ Union at Western University. “To be clear, these are not just issues that arose as a result of COVID-19 but, rather, have been around for years and not adequately addressed.”
Disparities in experiences and outcomes for students from marginalized backgrounds have been ongoing areas of concern for activists, but conversations about these gaps have risen in prominence over the past 18 months. OUSA advocates for a number of recommendations for the provincial government to better support students from marginalized backgrounds, including the integration of culturally-relevant mental health care, increasing access for students with disabilities and international students, and dismantling administrative barriers for Two-Spirit and LGBTQ+ students.
“Our authors take a critical look at where these inequities lie and how they can be improved to provide a safe, validating, and affirming post-secondary experience for all,” said Malika Dhanani, Research and Policy Analyst at OUSA. “Using a combination of statistical evidence and lived experiences, our contributors – who include stakeholders, faculty, and student leaders – provide valuable insights into what equity in education means.”
Each year, Educated Solutions gives post-secondary stakeholders across Ontario an opportunity to provide their thoughts, opinions, and insights on issues affecting Ontario’s post-secondary education system. OUSA hopes that the diverse perspectives in this year’s edition will provide insight into how we can better build equity into all aspects of post-secondary education and encourage sector leaders and partners to enhance their efforts to ensure university spaces and experiences are beneficial for everyone.
Issue 15 of Educated Solutions can be found here.
About: OUSA represents the interests of 150,000 professional and undergraduate, full-time and part-time university students at eight student associations across Ontario. Our vision is for an accessible, affordable, accountable, and high-quality post-secondary education in Ontario.
Media Contact:
Irum Chorghay
Communications & Operations Coordinator
Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance
416-341-9948
[email protected]