Back to school has been a busy time for the SU, and advocacy throughout September is no exception. The SU has been in the media throughout September talking primarily about students heading back to class, their expectations, and the housing crisis in Calgary.
Starting in September and continuing through the fall semester, SU staff and elected officials will be hearing from the university on their plans for tuition. The SU will be advocating for students to be given a break after three consecutive years of increases well above inflation. We have heard from students that they are not only broke but at a financial breaking point.
The SU closed its advocacy survey which will help inform our discussions with the university around tuition and will be valuable to our efforts with the three orders of government as well. We heard that students do not feel they are getting good value for their tuition dollars and the quality of education has not increased despite students paying at least 25% more in tuition since 2019.
We also heard that students want more accountability from the university on how student dollars are spent through mandatory fees like the student services fee and the Dinos athletics fee. Stay tuned for updates on this work.
In September, SLC discussed a document formalizing what the SU, and students, expect for meaningful consultation from the university when it comes to tuition and other issues that affect students. The SU will be sending this to the Provost to formalize a consistent consultation process.
SLC also discussed a series of issue sheets that will be used to advocate to government, primarily the Government of Alberta. As Alberta heads into a provincial election in May 2023, the SU intends to be active to raise the profile of student and post-secondary issues. Stay tuned for more.