Tuition Hikes?

Today I was interviewed by News 95.7 in Halifax about the Education Policy Institute report which was recently released.

The report addresses the recession and how it might affect the post secondary education system across the country. One of the solutions that are proposed, and the one that is gaining a lot of attention in Nova Scotia today, is to stop freezing tuition and to increase it.

The thought of increased tuition is one that I am against and one that I can only assume the average student in Canada will be against as well. Last year the Council of Nova Scotia University Presidents signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Province of Nova Scotia. One of the facets of the agreement was that tuition would be frozen for the next three years. Additionally there has been a Nova Scotia student grant that the province gives to all Nova Scotia students studying at universities in Nova Scotia. These grants will increase over the next three years to hopefully bring Nova Scotia's tuition level down to the national average (there is about a $1000 difference between Nova Scotia tuition and the national average). There is also a grant for Canadian students studying at Nova Scotia institutions in the third year.

The memorandum of understanding and the grants were something that the Alliance of Nova Scotia Student Association had worked closely with over the last year and were very happy to see these results.

It is our hope that the government of Nova Scotia will honour their commitment to Nova Scotia students and will not increase tuition.

What's In It For You?

Dalhousie University has been embarking on a campus master plan process which commenced in the summer and is now working its way into phase two. Starting on Monday March 2 there will be a series of charattes available for the Dalhousie community to view and give their feedback on.

Phase one consisted of many stakeholder meetings and gathering information on what people like about the campus, what they do not like, and what they would like to see. The campus master planning team has gone to the drawing board and created ideas for the campus which ideally will encompass the feedback that they received during phase one.

This phase of the process is integral to have your input on and I really hope that you will engage in some, or even better all, of the meetings. Please click here for more information.

And remember - this is your campus, your experience, so get involved and have your voice heard!

Spring Exam Schedule

The DAL spring exam schedule has been posted - I know you've all been eagerly waiting to find out when you'll have to write exams. Here is the link to the webpage where you can find the scheduled exams.

Reading Week

This week is reading week for DAL and I have decided to take it as a vacation (executives do not have automatic vacation days just because it is reading week).

Although my plan is to relax, hang out with friends, and get caught up with life in general I still will be doing some work (mostly writing reports, answering some emails, and all that jazz - just no meetings).

And I will still try to update my blog when things are going on, for example - tonight the Dalhousie Women's Water Polo team is playing at the Dalplex at 7:00pm. This is part of the tournament that they are hosting this weekend. I will be at the game - and if you are free tonight I'd be glad to have your company!

I hope everyone has a safe and relaxing reading week!