College students welcome newly appointed Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities

TORONTO, Oct. 20, 2011 – College students welcome the Honourable Glen Murray in his newly appointed post as the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities. Students find it encouraging that post-secondary education (PSE) was one of the focal points of the Ontario Liberal Party’s platform this past election, and are excited to work with the Minister to make these promises a reality.

One of Minister Murray’s initial tasks will be the implementation of a 30% tuition reduction for the majority of post-secondary students across Ontario. This plan speaks directly to student affordability, and to students accessing a higher education.

“The tuition reduction plan is top-of-mind for students right now, and we look forward to collaborating with Minister Murray in the development and implementation of this and other PSE initiatives,” says Brian Costantini, President of the College Student Alliance (CSA).

“Post-secondary students’ issues are more complex than ever, and student affordability is not the only concern that students have,” replies Jim Robeson, Director of Advocacy for the CSA. He adds, “We all must work together to address issues of quality, accessibility, transferability, and accountability and continue to improve our higher education system.”

Ontario is amongst the global leaders in higher education, and the CSA is committed to working collaboratively with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to help shape the direction of PSE into the future.

The College Student Alliance is an advocacy organization, which has been proudly serving Ontario’s college and college-university students since 1975. The CSA currently represents 15 colleges and 23 member councils with over 130,000 full-time student members throughout the province.

For further information:

Brian Costantini
President
College Student Alliance
T: (905) 641-2252 ext. 4226
E: president@collegestudentalliance.ca

Jim Robeson
Director of Advocacy
College Student Alliance
T: 416-340-1212
E: advocacy@collegestudentalliance.ca

College students are relieved to know the strike is over

TORONTO, Sept. 19, 2011 – Late last night the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) and the College Employers Council (the Council) reached a tentative agreement that will see the 8,000 support staff across Ontario colleges return to work. After 18 days, Ontario’s college students will now have access to all services as of Tuesday, September 20.

“Students are relieved to know the strike is over, and applaud OPSEU and the Council for reaching an agreement,” says Brian Costantini, President of the College Student Alliance (CSA). He adds, “Today is a win for everyone in the colleges.”

The details of the agreement will not be released until after a ratification, which has yet to be scheduled.

“Students can now go back to school knowing that their college will be fully operational, and the services essential to them will be accessible,” replies Costantini. “The college experience that so many have waited for is finally here.”

The College Student Alliance is an advocacy organization, which has been proudly serving Ontario’s college and college-university students since 1975. The CSA currently represents 15 colleges and 23 member councils with over 130,000 full-time student members throughout the province.

College students say get back to the table – enough is enough

TORONTO, Sept. 15, 2011 – Two weeks are about to pass since the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) and the College Employer’s Council (the Council) broke off negotiations. Colleges have remained open, but throughout this timeframe the number of students impacted by the strike has continued to rise.

“Both OPSEU and the Council have indicated their willingness to go back to the table, but we have yet to see either party step forward and take initiative towards a resolution,” says Brian Costantini, President of the College Student Alliance (CSA). “The longer the strike goes on the greater the impact will be on all students.”

The issues experienced by students have not only been in the colleges themselves, but also outside on the picket lines. Some support staff have asked students to join the picket lines over attending class. Likewise, students from various colleges have expressed their discontent with the inability to access needed services at the college, such as IT, childcare and tutoring.

“We are beginning to see a domino effect as the number of issues increases,” replies Anthony Boland, Vice-President of the CSA. He adds, “We need both parties to get back to the table as some students’ semesters are in now in jeopardy.”

The College Student Alliance is an advocacy organization, which has been proudly serving Ontario’s college and college-university students since 1975. The CSA currently represents 15 colleges and 23 member councils with over 130,000 full-time student members throughout the province.

New poll finds post-secondary education a high priority for Ontario

TORONTO, September 14 / - More than nine in ten Ontarians believe post-secondary education is important to the economic prosperity of the Province, according to a recent poll released today. The majority of respondents are concerned about the cost of college and university for students and are willing to pay more in taxes to address this.

The poll, conducted by Abacus Data Inc., was commissioned by the College Student Alliance and the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance as part of the It’s Your Vote campaign to engage students and the public about the importance of post-secondary education to the October 6th election.

“Making higher education more affordable is a clear priority for Ontario’s voters,” says David Coletto, Chief Executive Officer of Abacus Data. “Several of Ontario’s political parties have already addressed this concern to varying degrees through their platforms, and this survey suggests they would fare well to continue building on this.”

As found in the study, over 70% of parents are worried about their ability to help pay for their children’s post-secondary education, and 68% of Ontarians think that the cost of tuition prevents some willing students from attending. Over half of those surveyed agreed they would be willing to pay more in taxes to reduce tuition fees and improve student aid.

“Post-secondary education is top of mind for students, but this poll clearly shows it is also a priority for Ontarians,” added Coletto.

The results of this study are based on a poll of 1,002 Ontarians over the age of 18 conducted between September 9 and 12, 2011. The margin of error for a sample of this size is +/- 3.2 percentage points within a confidence interval of 95%.

Online scrapbook tells story of college campus deferred maintenance

TORONTO, Sept. 12, 2011 – What remains a politically unattractive topic, but will become the responsibility of the newly elected government on October 6^th is deferred maintenance.  With the help of college and college-university students across the province, the College Student Alliance (CSA) has compiled deferred maintenance photographs to create an online scrapbook.   These photos highlight the need for fair and student-centred investments towards this area of concern.

“Deferred maintenance can impact the health and safety of college students, and this persistent issue must be amongst the post-secondary education priorities for the provincial election,” said Brian Costantini, President of the CSA. “College facilities represent significant taxpayer investment and proper measures need to be in place to ensure infrastructure is maintained and the backlog doesn’t continue to grow.”

No party has properly dealt with the issue of deferred maintenance, and as a result Ontario’s 24 colleges have a backlog of between $568 million and $745 million. Likewise, this year alone approximately $70 million in capital repairs must be dealt with, as they are in critical condition. Investments in new capital assets are critical, but must not overshadow the need to take care of Ontario’s learning facilities that already exist.

Photographs of infrastructure renewal successes and current issues can be found in the scrapbook and it is CSA’s hope that these can be used to better depict the concerns at hand.

“These photographs exhibit the need for additional funding towards deferred maintenance and can be found on our election website www.itsyourvote.ca along with other useful resources regarding election priorities for all post?secondary students,” replies Costantini.

It is the hope of the CSA that this online resource can be used to inform students and address the need for additional funding in a student?centered manner. The CSA believes that these photographs will assist the political parties to realize the significance of deferred maintenance across all 24 colleges.

The College Student Alliance (CSA) is an advocacy organization, which has been proudly serving Ontario’s college and college?university students since 1975. The CSA currently represents 15 colleges and 23 member councils with over 130,000 full?time student members throughout the province.

College students disappointed with Elections Ontario decision

TORONTO, Sept. 9, 2011 /CNW/ – College and college university students were informed today that Elections Ontario has decided to relocate 27 college campus polls to alternative locations. This disappointing news comes less than two weeks away from the beginning of the advance polls, and is due to the recent support staff strike.

“Student associations have been working on their campuses to help mobilize the student vote and engage the youth in this provincial election,” says Brian Costantini, President of the College Student Alliance (CSA).  “Historically this has been a demographic that has not fully participated elections. “

The CSA has been in touch with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) and the College Employers Council.  Both parties are prepared to cooperate to ensure students and citizens have access to vote. Moving forward, we have been assured that labour disputes should not impact the voting process, as this one has.

“We strongly advise that future planning considers the effects of situations such as staff strikes and that students are consulted in the process” says Anthony Boland, Vice-President, CSA.

A great deal of criteria is considered in the decision to place polling stations at a given location. Each station must be verifiable and guaranteed and it is CSA’s understanding that Elections Ontario has decided to pursue other avenues that better fit their criteria.

Campus outreach initiatives will still take place and students are encouraged to visit www.itsyourvote.ca and follow us on twitter (@CSA_ON) for the most up-to-date information pertaining to the provincial election and voting options.

The College Student Alliance (CSA) is an advocacy organization, which has been proudly serving Ontario’s college and college-university students since 1975. The CSA currently represents 15 colleges and 23 member councils with over 130,000 full-time student members throughout the province.

Students compare party platforms on higher education

The College Student Alliance and the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance represent over 280,000 college and university students at 34 student associations in communities across Ontario.

On Monday, CSA Vice President Anthony Boland spoke with Sun News about the OPSEU support staff strike and what it means for our students.

Click here to watch the interview.

Students applaud Liberal commitment to increase affordability of post-secondary education

TORONTO, September 5 /CNW/ – College and university students welcome a proposed new grant that would significantly reduce the cost of accessing post-secondary education in Ontario. The Ontario Liberal Party announced today that, if elected, they will provide a new grant to full-time college and undergraduate students with family incomes under $160,000. The grant will be available to approximately five out of six dependent students and will be equal to 30% of average tuition fees.

“Access to post-secondary education is the single greatest investment for the future of Ontario” said Natalie Cockburn, Vice President of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance. “By providing more grants and reducing students’ up-front costs, this plan will help hundreds of thousands of students afford a higher education.”
The new grant will be available this January and will automatically provide $1,600 to eligible undergraduate students and $730 to eligible college students each year. This commitment of over $400 million will be tied to tuition increases and will dramatically increase the funding available for need-based grants.

“This proposal should bring the cost of accessing post-secondary education in Ontario below the national average. This represents a significant and positive shift for students” added Anthony Boland, Vice President of the College Student Alliance.

In addition, the party has committed to target funding for three new satellite campuses that will concentrate on quality for undergraduate students. Students have long called for a renewed focus on teaching quality at our institutions, and today’s plans demonstrate a willingness to address both growth and quality moving forward. The Ontario Liberal Party has also indicated that the student debt ceiling will remain in place and that tuition increases will continue to be regulated.

As part of the It’s Your Vote campaign launched last week, college and university students released a joint platform, Our Vote, Our Future, which called for significant increases in need-based aid. Students are eager to work with all stakeholders toward enhancing the affordability, accessibility, quality and mobility of the post-secondary education system.

The College Student Alliance and the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance represent over 280,000 college and university students at 34 student associations in communities across Ontario.

Ontario’s college and university students unite to increase participation in provincial election

TORONTO, Sept. 1, 2011 /CNW/ – As the writ drop of the 2011 Ontario General Election approaches, more than 600,000 college and university students across Ontario are also preparing for the 2011-12 school year. To help students stay informed and encourage them to vote on October 6^th, the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) and the College Student Alliance (CSA) have collaborated to launch the province-wide It’s Your Vote campaign.

“Voter turnout in the last Ontario election was an all-time low. College and university student associations are working together to increase student participation in this election and remind the parties and all Ontarians that post-secondary education must be a priority for the Province,” said Sean Madden, President of OUSA.

The campaign website itsyourvote.ca was launched today. The website will have videos, blogs and information updated throughout the campaign to help students find out how and why they should vote. It also includes a joint platform entitled “Our Vote, Our Future” which contains students’ electoral priorities for post-secondary education.

“Post-secondary education has and will continue to drive Ontario’s economic recovery. We know that 70% of all new jobs will also require post-secondary education, and continued investment is necessary,” added Brian Costantini, President of CSA. “Students will be looking for commitments from all parties to enhance the affordability, accessibility, quality and mobility of the post-secondary system.”

College and university students look forward to seeing all political candidates on their campuses this September, and hearing more about each party’s plan for investing in Ontario’s post-secondary education sector.

The College Student Alliance and the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance represent over 280,000 college and university students at 34 student associations in communities across Ontario.