Federal Election - NDP and PSE

Back on September 8th the DSU released the press release below:

STUDENTS URGE NDP CANDIDATE TO MAKE EDUCATION A PRIORITY

Halifax, NS – Dalhousie University students are encouraging all candidates for the federal riding of Halifax to make post secondary education a priority in the upcoming federal election. On the evening of the NDP candidate nomination, the Dalhousie Student Union (DSU) is hoping the party chooses a candidate that is willing to champion post secondary education in Ottawa. Issues important to students include a change to the federal funding formula for post secondary institutions, funding for graduate student research, and access and affordability to a quality education.

Nova Scotia has been suffering from a federal funding formula that subsidizes the costs of post secondary education based on the number of residents in a province. Students from out of province aren’t incorporated into this formula, which is problematic because Nova Scotia is a net-importer of students. This has resulted in the provincial government deciding to subsidize education costs for residential students only, leading to increased tuition fees for out of province students. “We hope that the next federal government will recognize this inequity, and create a dedicated transfer to the province for higher education that accounts for the number of students living here,” explained DSU President Courtney Larkin. “Within three years differential tuition fees will grow to the point that out of province students are paying more than one thousand dollars more than residential students in a year’s tuition.”

Students are also urging candidates to push for more federal funding for graduate students needing research support. “Graduate programs are typically more expensive than undergraduate programs” says Larkin. “Lack of funding is a barrier that is preventing otherwise qualified graduates from continuing their studies in higher education.”

Lastly, the DSU hopes that any new money for student financial aid will be directed to those students who need it the most. “We need more targeted, up front funding that will be directed towards high-need and low-income students,” suggests Larkin. “Our goal is to ensure that all academically qualified students are given access to the resources they require to achieve a quality post secondary education.”

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The NDP recently released their full platform and within it was PSE. Today the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations released the following:

Students welcome pledge of long-term predictable federal funding for post-secondary education.

OTTAWA, Sept. 28 /CNW Telbec/ - The Canadian Alliance of Student
Associations is encouraged by the pledge of the New Democratic Party to create
a dedicated funding transfer from the federal government in each fiscal year
to support the post-secondary educational services of the provinces. The
pledge, announced today as part of the NDP's "Education Opportunity Plan",
would guarantee each province a long-term, predictable level of funding each
year, provided that each province satisfied certain criteria and conditions
set by the federal government regarding program quality, accessibility, public
administration and accountability.

    "Since the 1990's, the responsibility for funding post-secondary
education in Canada has largely been offloaded to individual students and
private enterprise, placing the accessibility, affordability and quality of
the system in jeopardy," said Zach Churchill, National Director of the
Canadian Alliance of Student Associations. "Depending on the amount, a
dedicated transfer can help to reverse this process, allowing the federal
government to reclaim its abdicated responsibility for ensuring a properly
funded and accountable public post-secondary education system."

   The NDP Education Opportunity Plan also promises:

   <<
       - A grant of $1000 by 2012 to all undergraduate or equivalent
         students who qualify for student loans, paid at the beginning of
         each school year
       - A promise to forgive the student loans of health professionals who
         commit to dedicate the first 10 years of their careers to family
         medicine in Canada
       - A promise to reform the Canada Student Loan system, including
         providing interest relief, to ensure that students will not be
         forced to start repaying their loans until after they have
         completed their education
   >>

   CASA calls on the New Democratic Party to follow-up on today's
announcement with more specific details about how their dedicated education
transfer payment will be funded each year. With reference to this, CASA
recommends that a dedicated transfer be funded at an initial level of
$4 billion in annual cash transfers, with increases made accordingly for
annual inflation and demographic growth thereafter.
   CASA will continue to call on the other parties in this election to
create progressive solutions designed to increase the participation rates of
Canadians who are currently underrepresented in the post-secondary system,
while sustaining students currently in the system by reducing the amount of
debt incurred in pursuit of a post-secondary credential
   The Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA) is a non-partisan,
not-for-profit national student organization composed of 23 student
associations, representing 300,000 students from coast to coast.

For further information: Jillian Flake, Public Relations and
Communications Officer, CASA, (613) 236-3457, ext. 224, (c) (613) 868-6605,
casacomm@casa.ca