QUALITY OF LIFE: WE CAN AFFORD TO CARE
POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION: THE TUITION CRISIS
There was once a time when post-secondary education was a luxury reserved for the wealthy. Is it becoming that way again? Tuition fees have risen 135% over the last ten years, six times faster than the rate of inflation. At the current rate of increase it will soon be out of the reach of many young people and especially those from lower income backgrounds. Whatever happened to the principle of equality of opportunity?
Statistics show that a post-secondary education greatly increases the likelihood of good employment. Despite this fact, Ontario has one of the lowest per-student post-secondary funding rates in North America. The under-funding of Ontario Universities and Colleges directly contradicts the government’s claim that it is promoting increased worker productivity through higher education. More funding is clearly needed, but more money alone will not solve some of the deeper problems affecting the quality of Ontario post-secondary education. As long as the governance structure of universities and colleges significantly under-represents elected faculty, students, and staff, problems of quality and accountability will persist. The Green Party believes that post-secondary education should be financially accessible to all qualifying students. Our intention would be to significantly reduce tuition fees (by 50% - 70%) and bring them in line with tuition fees charged in Quebec to Quebec residents.
We would make the following changes:
- Provision of attractive tax incentives for donations made to post-secondary school endowment funds.
- Increase per-student funding level of Universities and Colleges to the highest level in Canada.
- Establishment of strong guidelines and limits to corporate funding at post-secondary public institutions.
- Increase power and role of elected faculty, students, and staff in University and College governance.
- Expansion of the function of colleges to include more non-classroom programs, such as formal apprenticeships, for students who prefer to learn by doing.
- Modification of the student loan system to allow a portion of loans to be repaid in community service.