Archive for the ‘Education Debates’ Category

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OCUFA calls for resignation of Ross Romano amid devastating cuts to jobs and programs at Laurentian University

Tuesday, April 13th, 2021

The financial crisis facing Laurentian was created by the provincial government, which has chronically underfunded Ontario’s universities, cut and froze tuition fees without providing equivalent public funding, and abandoned an important Northern university in its greatest moment of need… Romano has demonstrated the same resistance to consultation, transparency, and accountability as the Laurentian administration.

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Laurentian University is in peril, and it’s not alone. Governments have systematically underfunded universities and colleges across the country for decades

Sunday, April 11th, 2021

It is not due to faculty salaries, as the number of full-time faculty has actually declined over the last decade. Nor is it due to enrolment which has remained stable over the last decade… In addition to the government funding drought… campus modernization has left Laurentian with big mortgages on still half-empty buildings… [Laurentian] provides jobs for around 1,000 people, educates over 9,000 students and undertakes world-class research.

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2021 budget a missed opportunity to invest in Ontario’s future

Thursday, March 25th, 2021

The budget doesn’t increase operating grants for universities, which continues the chronic underfunding of Ontario’s public university system. Under the Ford government, per-student funding for universities will drop even further, as institutions will be expected to increase enrolment over the next three years without any additional money… further destabilizing a sector already reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic and jeopardizing our economic recovery.

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Nipissing University Faculty Association supports Laurentian University

Wednesday, March 24th, 2021

“This process was designed for private corporations, and the precedent set by allowing a public institution, funded by the Province, to declare insolvency and enter the CCAA could not be more troubling: if a public university can be dismantled by a secretive, closed-door process intended for private businesses, then why not any other public institution?  “A Crown corporation, perhaps?  Or a hospital? 

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Laurentian left off of list of schools sharing in $106M pot of provincial dollars

Monday, March 22nd, 2021

“The crisis at Laurentian University would have been avoided if this government did its job and properly funded Ontario’s universities,” said OCUFA president RahulSapra. “Not only did the policies of this government push Laurentian over the edge, but Minister Romano knew about Laurentian’s precarious financial position at least six months beforehand, which gave him more than enough time to provide the university with the financial support it needed…”

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Ontario pledges $106.4M for university, college COVID-19 costs

Saturday, March 20th, 2021

The Council of Ontario Universities (COU) estimates its 21 members have spent or lost $1 billion during the pandemic, but found $500 million in one-time savings. It has said there is “an urgent need for sector-wide cost recovery.” … “while this targeted and time-limited investment will help address some urgent and immediate costs, it does not address the significant long-term financial needs of the sector.”

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Is it time for Ontario to end Catholic school funding?

Thursday, March 18th, 2021

… such a move would save taxpayers an estimated $1.6 billion a year… And school boards across Ontario are facing huge financial crunches, with dropping enrolment often resulting in half-empty schools… a single public system would also mean thousands of students could attend schools closer to home and put a permanent end to calls for public funding for schools operated by Jewish, Muslim and Christian fundamentalists groups.

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Doug Ford helped create a crisis for Ontario’s universities. Now it’s up to him to save them

Tuesday, March 9th, 2021

Bleeding cash, Ontario’s universities are begging for a $500 million cash infusion to stay alive during COVID-19… The premier’s antics created the problem in the first place with that 10 per cent cut. A compensating 10 per cent top-up today is the price to pay to help universities get over the hump — through government funding, not a tuition increase (students cannot be expected to pay, given the disruptions of the pandemic).

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OCUFA: As Laurentian’s funding crisis continues, Ministry of Colleges and Universities refuses to take action

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2021

… at a meeting with OCUFA, Ministry representatives said the government intends to wait until after the university has been dramatically restructured through the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act(CCAA) to determine its next steps… “For years we have been warning about the government’s chronic underfunding of Ontario’s universities and the negative impact it would have on students and education quality,” said Rahul Sapra, President of OCUFA.

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The ugly side of performance-based funding for universities

Monday, February 22nd, 2021

Universities are much more than entrepreneurial training centres to be rewarded for performing short-sighted corporate-styled research and worker development. With that mandate, they cease to be universities in any sense of the word. To create a future where we can all thrive, our citizens need to not only have the skills to prosper today, but be capable of imagining and implementing a better tomorrow.

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