BURNABY, B.C. (CUP) — Tempers flared and cries of “shame” filled the room as Simon Fraser University’s board of governors approved a 30 per cent hike in tuition fees – the second such increase in as many years.

Almost 100 students attended the April 3 meeting, which also saw the university’s highest decision-making body increase ancillary fees for athletic and recreation facilities and student services by the same percentage.

“Tuition fee increases pose a real barrier to education,” said Jonathan Silveira, a student member of the board. “Students believe that by increasing tuition and other fees, we will make SFU a place which will emphasize large bank accounts and undervalue the hard work of students working two part-time jobs to make their way through school.”

Silveira and fellow student representative Danny Chen were the only governors to vote against the fee hikes.

“Today is one of the most disappointing days of my life as a student at SFU,” Chen said.

The increase will place the university’s tuition rate at 10 per cent below the national average. Effective the fall semester, the basic undergraduate tuition fee will climb from $95.10 to $123.70 per credit hour. The basic graduate tuition full-time fee unit will rise from $948.35 to $1232.90.

The fee hikes will offset a $9.8 million budget shortfall resulting from a decrease in funding from the provincial government and rising employee costs.

“Someone must be drinking again in Victoria if they think it’s just fine to chop, slash, and axe our funding by over $3.3 million, forcing a fee increase which surpasses 60 per cent over a short two-year period,” Silveira said.

Twenty-five per cent of the tuition increase will be set aside for scholarships and bursaries – as was the case with last year’s tuition hike.

“Improving scholarships and bursaries is an integral part of our approach to tuition increases,” said Michael Stevenson, president and vice chancellor of the university. “This will allow students eligible for bursaries to receive a significantly greater proportion than previously.”

Tuition and ancillary fees have shot up at postsecondary institutions across British Columbia since the provincial government ended a six-year tuition freeze last year.

SFU’s board of governors is composed of 15 members, including the university’s chancellor, president, two elected faculty members, two elected students, one elected staff member, and eight persons appointed by the provincial government.

All Photos: Stephen Hui / The Peak

ST. JOHN’S, NFLD. (CUP) — Three weeks after Memorial University approved a 33 per cent tuition hike for international students, student union leaders say they are solidifying plans to have the decision revisited and overturned.

University spokesperson Peter Morris says they are wasting their time.

The fee increase, approved by the Board of Regents on Feb. 6, affects undergraduate international students at all of Memorial’s campuses, except those in the medical faculty.

Memorial Student Union executive member Thom Duggan says the union is planning a second protest against the increase, though they have not yet set a date. The union is encouraging their international student membership to file complaints against the university with the human rights commission.
Duggan says at least one student is expected to meet with investigators from the human rights commission this week.

Morris calls these actions “offensive” and charges that the union is not acting in the best interest of students. He says they should focus on negotiating with university administrators to see extra revenues are spent where they need to be.

“There are any number of things that they could put their energies to that are far more productive than fighting a battle over a decision that’s already been made,” said Morris. “As to the notion that this is in any way an issue for the human rights commission [that] is, I would say, ridiculous at best and offensive at worst.”

But Duggan says the union has been forced to take these actions because of disrespect shown to students by the administration. He charges that the administration has not taken any of the students’ concerns seriously.

Duggan specifically mentions an article in the university-published Gazette printed several days before the Regents met and approved the increase. Although most of the story refers to the increases in hypothetical terms, the first sentence reads, “The university has announced that fees for new international students will increase in the coming academic year.”

The Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) and Memorial’s Graduate Students Union (GSU) have also backed the Student Union’s efforts, despite the fact that the increases do not apply to grad students.

“Graduate students, in general, are just opposed to this . . . about one quarter of all grad students are international students . . . they’re concerned that their peers are having these high tuition rates put on them,” said GSU executive member Heather Smith. “The other thing is that the concern is there that, if it happens at the undergrad level, it’ll happen at the grad level next.”

CFS National Chair Ian Boyko criticized the Regents’ decision to increase the fees.

“You’d think that [Memorial] would need to encourage international students to come to study in Canada . . . it’s in fact doing the exact opposite and I think it’s just backwards policy,” said Boyko.

Peter Morris objects to Boyko’s argument, reiterating the university administration’s position that they are taking steps to ensure the fee increase does not hamper access to education for low-income international students.

“Our expectation is . . . with scholarships and bursaries we’ll actually increase the numbers of international students we’ll be able to attract,” he said. “Even with the increases, [international tuition] will still be very inexpensive . . . there’s no indication that the cost of this will be any deterrent to students.”

However, Boyko calls this line of reasoning “an absurd theory.”

“When user fees go up, accessibility goes down, and it doesn’t matter if you use a small proportion to go back into student aid. You wouldn’t need that increased student aid if you didn’t raise tuition fees – I would say it’s that simple.”

But Morris says the CFS’s position is impractical.

“If you’re looking for absurd theories, then Mr. Boyko’s notion that we should be providing free tuition to students from all over the world – that’s obviously the logical conclusion of the opposition he would express to fees . . . that would be ridiculous,” he said.

By George Lister, The Argus

THUNDER BAY, ONT. (CUP)“?At first glance this seems like an odd time of year to write about buying a computer since most people, not just students, do that in September. The first reason for doing it now is that there are usually other stories to tell when school kicks off, but more importantly this is a great time to shop if you want to save some money.

Computer shopping can almost always be broken down to a series of questions, so that’s how this is going to be structured. Since we’ve all had enough exams, I’ll be kind and give you the answers too.

QUESTION 1: MAC OR PC?
Yeah, this question is still out there folks, just in case you thought Apple was dead. With some impressive new machines that look even better than they work (which is really well), Apple has regained a lot of lost market share. Even so, I generally would not recommend buying a Mac unless you’re heavily into video, sound or image editing. And, frankly, if you’re into that you probably don’t need to read this article.

Macs are great, hell I own one as well as a PC. If I had to pick just one computer to use for the rest of my life, I’d probably pick the Mac. That being said they are more expensive, somewhat slower, and it’s a lot harder to find software for them. Sadly, for most people the PC is a better bet.

QUESTION 1B: WHAT ABOUT LINUX?
Linux is an open source (no copyright on the code) operating system. It is stable, it is free (or cheap), and it is often heralded as the only real threat to Microsoft out there. Unfortunately it remains useful only to geeks. The problem is that even with all the user friendly ways in which Linux has been modified, you need to know a fair bit about command lines and coding to truly make it worthwhile. Let me put it this way…I’m a computer geek, but I’m not a good enough of one to really be able to use Linux well.

QUESTION 2: AMD OR INTEL?
The short answer is that it doesn’t really matter. AMD’s Athlon and Duron processors are usually a bit cheaper than Intel’s Pentium and Celeron ones and have similar, and sometimes better performance. Ultimately, they all work and there are good deals to be had no matter which you choose, so go by price and performance. If a computer has what you want at a price you’re willing to pay, then don’t worry too much about the processor. The only caveat here is that the Intel Celeron chip is the weakest out of the bunch so, since you can usually get one for cheaper anyhow, I’d go for a Duron based one instead.

QUESTION 3: HOW MUCH SHOULD I SPEND?
The flip answer to that question is: As much as you can afford. That phrase has almost become a cliché in the computer industry, but it’s also valid since you usually end up spending more money to upgrade later than to buy everything you need right away.

Since having tons of money to spend on anything is rarely the case for most of us student types let me throw some rough numbers at you. These days you can pick up a decent computer for under $1000. You have to be careful here though, since there’s usually a catch. In some cases the machine doesn’t come with a monitor, or it only has 128 MB of RAM (which just isn’t enough these days), and almost never has a CD burner. Also sometimes the best sounding deals come from companies that have less than stellar quality and service records.

If you have a little more to spend, say about $1300 or so, you can get a computer that’s pretty much loaded with the good stuff. For $1500 you can get a computer to be proud of in every respect, and $2000 will buy you a computer that will have most geeks calling you “?daddy.’
Here’s a quick checklist of what you should look for at a minimum in a new machine:
-256 MB of RAM
-40 GB hard drive
-1.2 gigahertz processor
-17” monitor
-CD burner (you know you’re gonna want one)
-Windows XP
-AGP, non-integrated video card. Lots of cheap machines have what is called integrated video, as it it’s built right onto the motherboard of the machine. This is cheap and sometimes even decent for video, but you will NEVER be able to upgrade it and it isn’t suitable for a lot of games.

QUESTION 4: SHOULD I BUY A USED COMPUTER?
There are lots of used computers available, especially in April and May when students head for home. Sometimes you can find a really good deal, but there are a lot of problems. If you buy a used machine bring somebody with you who knows computers inside and out to check it over because there’s usually no warranty. Also, don’t plan on playing a lot of video games if you buy a used machine since, typically, games need some pretty recent hardware to work.

You can also buy a used machine from some stores and chains, and there are good deals to be had. If you go this route you’ll at least get a limited warranty but it will be more expensive than making a private purchase and the same warning about video games applies. It’s also rare to find a used machine with a CD burner and adding one might just put the purchase price a lot higher than you want.

If all you’re looking for a machine to surf the web, download music and to write essays on, then going used is a pretty good way to go. For less than $500 you can get a machine that will do those things I just listed, albeit not much more. Here’s what you should look for:
-128 MB of RAM
-6 GB hard drive
-300 Mhz processor or better
-Ethernet card and/or modem (depending on how you connect to the net)
-Windows 98
-15″ monitor or better

QUESTION 5: SHOULD I BUY A LAPTOP?
Laptops are great. There’s no question that it’s a good thing to have at school and I use it to take all my notes for class. They’re also nice for space-limited residence dwellers or anyone with limited desk space. However, laptops are more expensive than desktops, and more limited in their capabilities.

Laptops usually have less hard drive space, are slower, have less RAM, have fewer expansion options, and have less capable video systems. CD burners are quite common in laptops now, but do drive the price even higher. Also, anything you want to add to a laptop usually has to be added externally with cables.

Support and repair is another issue. Laptops are usually pretty hardy creatures but they do get banged around quite a bit. Add in the ever present possibility of a general computer failure of some kind and the odds of needing repair at some point are quite high. If your warranty has run out it can take hundreds of dollars and weeks of time (since it usually has to go back to the manufacturer) to get your machine back.

There’s no denying that these are very useful machines for students though, so here’s some prices and specs to think about. $1500 or less should get you a machine that runs at 1.3 Ghz or so (usually a Celeron or Duron chip) with 256 MB of RAM, a DVD-ROM, and a 20 GB hard drive. Around $2000 speeds the machine up to about 1.7 Ghz, increases the hard drive to 30 MB and might get you a DVD-ROM/CD burner combo. Over $2000 will either get you more power and more features, or less of each but a smaller, shinier machine.

What I ended up doing as an alternative was buy a great big desktop system first. Then I found a really cheap used laptop and bought it just for taking to school for notes (about all it’s good for). This doesn’t save you any space but it saves you a lot of cash and gives you the best of both worlds.

QUESTION 6: WHERE SHOULD I BUY IT FROM?
You have, basically, two choices when it comes to buying a computer. You can either get a name brand machine from the manufacturer or from a big box store (like Future Shop), or you can buy a locally built machine from smaller retailers.

It’s not as cut and dry as it seems. At first glance buying the name brand machine is a no-brainer, but there are problems there. Especially in their cheaper offerings, name brand machines often don’t have name brand components inside. They often have cheaper hard drives, power supplies too weak for the demands placed on them, and integrated video (see question 3). On the other hand they’re often cheaper, offer national service on a standard warranty, have more financing plans available, and offer toll free support.

A locally built machine requires the buyer to have a little more computer know-how than does a name brand one since you don’t have the same toll free support option. On the other hand the parts are usually higher quality, repairs are done here in town so they take less time, and you get to specify exactly what you want to go into the computer.

Having worked at both big box stores and smaller local ones, I would suggest that you at least look at the local options. The prices are competitive and there’s no question you get better service with faster turnaround. If having a warranty that extends beyond the borders of your town is important consider buying an extended warranty. These are available at all small stores and cover you nationwide.

QUESTION 6B: WHAT’S THAT ABOUT EXTENDED WARRANTIES?
Extended warranties are”?in some ways”?the greatest rip-off in the industry. If nothing ever goes wrong with your machine the retailer has just made a bunch of pure profit. If anything does go wrong however you will be really freaking happy to have one.

Since they usually add a few hundred dollars to the purchase price it isn’t an easy decision. I tend to recommend them just because I know much I used to charge people to fix their computers. If you buy a cheap as hell machine from, say, Future Shop, definitely get the warranty. It’s been my experience that those machines break a lot. If you buy a laptop, budget to buy the extended warranty there, too, since those repairs are the priciest in the business. Otherwise it’s your call.

QUESTION 7: WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO BUY?
There are actually two best times to buy computers. The first is in September when everyone and their dog runs a back-to-school sale. You can find some great deals, especially on packages that include a printer and other goodies. This is the time to shop around and don’t let pushy salespeople or huge crowds force a decision upon you too quickly.

The other good time is pretty much right now. Most tech companies start bringing out their new models around March so retailers, often with Christmas stock still in inventory, have to clear out some space. These deals aren’t as widely advertised but they are out there and, since the crowds aren’t as bad, you’ll probably get a little bit better service.

That’s it folks, your crash course in computer shopping is done. The last few tips I’ll give you are simple ones. First, do your homework. Know what you want to buy and what the price range is. Second, bring a computer knowledgeable person along with you when you go shopping. And, finally, don’t be pressured by limited time sales or pushy salespeople, take your time.

With all that in mind go forth and buy yourself a really wicked new toy.

30 per cent tuition increase passes despite heavy student opposition

Published: Thu-30-Jan-2003
By Kathleen Deering, Ubyssey

VANCOUVER (CUP) — This year’s round of tuition consultations is over, as the University of British Colombia’s Board of Governors (BoG) passed the 2003-04 tuition proposal early yesterday morning”?despite many concerns voiced by students over the last several months.

Most undergraduate programs and post-baccalaureate fees will increase by 30 per cent. Research-based graduate tuition fees will be raised by 20 per cent. Most fees will change in May.

The BoG also passed a partial 2004-05 tuition proposal, which included a tuition schedule for some post-baccalaureate and graduate degrees.

“I’m disappointed there was not more discussion at the board meeting,” said Kristen Harvey, student union president. “I felt there was very little debate … it was great they invited more students to be there, and I wish there had been the full 300.”

The BoG meeting was held Monday in order to allow up to 300 students to witness the meeting. A mass e-mail was sent out Friday afternoon. Only about 40 students were present.

Harvey was surprised at how little debate there was about the proposal itself at both the board meeting on Monday and the BoG tuition committee meeting held last Thursday afternoon.

Harvey and Brian De Alwis, graduate student society president, made a presentation to Thursday’s committee, outlining five key concerns they felt the university should address. One was that last year’s tuition hike will begin in September, and this year’s hike would begin in May”?meaning two increases for students this school year.

At the BoG meeting Piper argued that other universities had increased their tuition in May of last year after the tuition freeze was lifted. “Students got a break last year,” she said, adding that UBC needed to align increases to match UBC’s budget process, since UBC’s fiscal year begins April 1.

But some students don’t agree. “[The tuition increase] is too big, it’s too much in one year,” said Steve Price, Arts student union president. “To draw it out over a long run would be beneficial to students.”

In their report Harvey and De Alwis said increasing tuition in May would cause a financial hardship for students. Piper said the university would focus next year on increased financial support for students who “fall through the cracks””?students who do not qualify for student loans with the B.C. or federal government, but still have monetary need.

Brian Sullivan, vice-president, students of UBC, said this year (taking figures up until January 22) there has been a 32 per cent increase in average monetary bursary allocation by the University to students. But although the amount of students applying for bursaries increased last year by 15 per cent, the eligibility of students only increased two per cent.

This year 15 per cent of the base increase and 20 per cent of the beyond-the-base increase (over 30 per cent) will be allocated to financial assistance, almost the same total increase as last year, Sullivan said.

Another concern students had was what they felt was a lack of consultation done by the university this year, since much of it was done over December.

“In general, I know there was less consultation [this year],” said Harvey. “I personally don’t count the exam period as meaningful consultation with students because … students are busy…writing exams, and in the case of grad students and [teaching assistants], marking exams.”

Piper said due to consultation with students last year, instead of raising tuition by 60 per cent to meet the national average (with Quebec fees based on out-of-province rates, which are thousands of dollars higher than in-province) UBC based tuition increases on assessed program needs.

But Kate Woznow, an executive member of the student union said she felt there has not been adequate demonstration of why 30 per cent increases are necessary this year, and felt that there are other methods the university could look at to gain new revenue. The University was supposed to address some of these concerns with its Benchmarking and Efficiency Analysis Report (BEAR), released recently.

Some students do not feel that BEAR was adequate. Harvey feels BEAR could have elaborated on how to make the school more efficient.

“I think it was a great first step, but I feel there was a lost opportunity there, and that was to find potential cost-savings,” she said. “It didn’t mention any recommendations of where there could be cost-savings found and where the university could move forward on that.”

When asked what students could expect in the 2004-05 year in terms of tuition raises, Piper could not give a definite answer. She said after the federal budget is released in a few weeks, UBC will have a better idea. “I think it’s too early to contemplate what next year looks like,” she said.

“The beautiful thing about writing is, you never arrive at something that you’re trying to do,” says Rudy Weibe. “You can never write a perfect book, you can never write a perfect story.”

Perfection, however, is what Weibe’s ninth and most recent novel Sweeter Than All The World approaches. Sitting in an office above King Street in Toronto on a rainy October morning, Rudy Wiebe talks about history, Canada, and the writing life.

“Writing is the kind of art, the kind of work that is endlessly, imaginatively drawing you on into something else. You can never stop, and you never want to stop. It’s the most delightful thing on earth I think.”

Characteristically Wiebe, Sweeter Than All The World is an epic sweep through 500 years of world history. It opens in the mid 20th century where we first meet young Adam Weibe on his father’s homestead in Waskahikan, Northern Alberta. By chapter three, however, we are in 16th century Netherlands, where we meet Trijntjen, the first of several historically authentic Weibe ancestors who will tell us their stories.

In grisly detail, we learn about the religious persecution of the Mennonites, complete with tongue screws and burnings at the stake. Weibe then goes on to share the harrows of descendents who survived starvation, rape and torture during the 400 years of war that ravaged Europe. We learn about the brilliant Wybe Adams van Harlingen, the man who invented the cable car and built and re-built the walls of Danzig in the 16th century. A man who for 30 years and through countless military attacks helped defend a city that wouldn’t have him as a citizen because of his religion.

These historical episodes come at intervals in the narrative of the 20th century Adam Wiebe, who, as his marriage and family falls apart, has become obsessed with his history. Voices from the distant past appear as if by magic, giving first-person accounts of events that shaped world history and that landed Adam in Canada in the 20th century. One cannot escape the effect of the past as a haunting informant to the present.

Also characteristic of Weibe is the emphasis on the relationship between his characters and the land they inhabit. As in Weibe’s earlier novels, The Temptations of Big Bear and A Discovery of Strangers (both winners of the Governor General’s Award for fiction), characters are inextricably linked to their geography.

“It’s very important, clearly, in this book, and the name ‘Adam’ gives you that,” says Weibe. “The marvelous story of Genesis where man, humanity, comes out of the earth, so that if you are working with the earth you are in effect working with yourself — working with that out of which you came. It’s like the Dene say, if you eat caribou all your life, you’re basically a caribou — these are, for me, wonderfully evocative ways of understanding our own earthliness.”

While Weibe readily admits some of Canada’s best known writers speak of urban landscapes, he is proud and happy to root himself in the earth, which he believes is every bit as universal as writing about cities.

“Even though my characters seem to live in cities, they’re always dreaming about worlds that aren’t surrounded like we are here by multi-storied buildings,” says Weibe. “If you go to Paraguay, or Russia, or Canada, or the United States there are worlds where you can still see the relative unimportance of human beings in relation to the landscape or the land which is simply there — and you don’t affect it much. In cities we can think that we’ve really changed the world, and in a way we have of course, but out in the landscape you don’t, and that’s a very strong feeling for me. It’s an important thing in my imagination. That is where my roots are, that is what drives my imagination, that relationship to land.”

Moving through the landscapes of 16th century Netherlands, to 19th century Russia, to Paraguay, and to the Alberta prairies, Sweeter Than All The World is an enveloping montage of stunningly detailed scenes filled with captive moments of sadness, wisdom, and poetic beauty without the slightest rumour of a less than well-wrought sentence in all of its 434 pages.

And writing the way Wiebe does, telling the kinds of stories he tells, there’s little chance of his writing life slowing anytime soon.

“The world is as full of stories as it is full of people, more so because people have hundreds of stories each themselves. If you’re curious, if you do the kind of writing that I’ve done most of my life, of snooping around in other people’s lives, literal lives, not just making them up, then it’s like what John the Evangelist says: if we were going to tell all the stories of the things that Jesus did on earth, the world wouldn’t be big enough to hold the books we’d have to write. Now that’s a marvelous hyperbole,” he says laughing, “but it’s sort of like that.”

Published: Mon-13-Jan-2003

By Kevin Groves, British Columbia Bureau

VANCOUVER (CUP) — At least one B.C. university made its leaders open to debate about tuition earlier this month as plans continue to add another 30 per cent increase onto B.C.’s post-secondary students this semester.

In a recent public forum, Brian Sullivan, the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) Vice-President Students, said that while the school’s 23 per cent increase last year allowed the university to make some improvements, in areas such as course availability, class size, classrooms, and technical support, additional increases are still needed.

“These [increases] are not just about raising tuition up to the national average, but about looking at maintaining our quality of education and improving what we have,” Sullivan said to the 13 students who attended the forum in the activity room of an on-campus residence.

UBC has called for a $798 increase in basic undergraduate tuition, bringing the grand total to $3,459 for a 30-credit course load. Tuition increases in other faculties, such as Commerce, Engineering, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, will be higher. Sullivan added that the current tuition proposal is not set in stone and can be changed based on student feedback.

But other sources interviewed were less optimistic that the tuition consultation process will yield any useful changes. “It seems like a façade,” said UBC student Jineane Babish, who attended the forum. “Having our input is important but I’d like to see our opinion applied in policy.”

Sullivan also admitted during the forum that UBC made an accounting mistake last year and over-budgeted by $5 million when it was preparing its tuition proposal. That means UBC will need to budget another $5 million in tuition revenue this year to offset university spending from last year. “Basically [UBC] spent $5 million beyond its means last year,” Sullivan said.
He added that UBC plans to consult with students on where this year’s extra $5 million in tuition revenue should be spent after the current tuition proposal is ratified.

That ratification process will occur after UBC’s tuition proposal is presented to its Board of Governors on Jan. 27. But the board’s finance committee will review the student consultation process four days earlier and may consider holding a special meeting in February to discuss tuition increases, should additional consultations be deemed necessary. If UBC’s tuition proposal is approved, the new fee schedule, which is projected to generate $28 million in additional revenue for the university, will take effect in May 2003.

Sullivan admitted the increases are painful, but said they are likely to get smaller in subsequent years. “Right now we’re in the second year of a three-year process of sizable increases,” he said. “After that I’m expecting modest, if any, tuition increases.”

Meanwhile, other B.C. colleges and universities have taken different approaches toward consulting with students about tuition.

At the University of Victoria (UVic), about 75 students staged a silent protest last week by binding their hands with rope and wearing gags made of stickers objecting to a 30 per cent tuition hike. The protest was staged to symbolize a lack of student input on tuition at UVic, said student society chair Michelle Kinney.

At the same time, UVic’s Board of Governors endorsed a budget that will increase average tuition fees by about $840. That decision brings the cost of basic undergraduate tuition to about $3,635 at UVic.

At Okanagan University College, North Campus student union president Aaron Ekman said his constituents are still reeling from last year’s tuition increases, and may decide to take action in the next few months.

“We’re a bit more conservative up here, so I doubt any protest will be similar to what we saw down on the coast, but there are a lot of people here who are getting fed up,” Ekman said. “A protest could come from us, or it may come from students doing it on their own.”

President agrees to meet with students and discuss tuition increases

Published: Wed-15-Jan-2003
By Shawn Hildebrandt, Gateway
CUP Contribution

EDMONTON (CUP) — More than 20 protestors crowded into University President Rod Fraser’s office in a peaceful occupation last Friday to protest proposed fee hikes and differential fees, and to demand a meeting with Fraser to discuss tuition issues.

The group, an unaffiliated coalition made up of students from the University of Alberta, Grant MacEwan College, and other concerned parties, occupied the office at 4 p.m. The demonstrators met no opposition as they walked directly into Fraser’s office, and remained in dialogue with representatives of Fraser for the duration of their stay.

Fraser’s representatives were presented with a list of six demands, which included “that the Board of Governors delay the tuition decision until more study has been conducted into the impacts of differential tuition, and that President Rod Fraser attend the upcoming Students’ Union tuition forum.”

But after only two hours, the demonstrators agreed to decamp once a representative agreed that Fraser would attend the Monday’s student union tuition forum, and when Campus Security informed them that they could be arrested for occupying the office.

Fraser kept his promise, spending over an hour talking at the forum with students about the administration’s stance on issues such as travel expenditures, differential tuition, class sizes, and government funding of post-secondary education.

The demonstrators had anticipated a prolonged standoff, bringing large supplies of food and water, and sleeping bags and bedrolls.

The demands arose out of a belief that the proposed tuition hikes would create a crisis in accessibility preventing students from middle- and low-income families from attending post-secondary education.

“The list of demands was compiled to bring attention to the fact that tuition is rising exponentially, while the University administration continues to spend money recklessly on salaries, travel, and furniture. And I think we’ve accomplished that,” said Kirsten McCrea, spokesperson for the group.

“We never went in there thinking all our demands would be met, and the fact that they’re agreeing to this meeting between student representatives and Dr. Fraser is a huge concession. But let me add, it’s only a start,” she said.

But Fran Trahearne, senior advisor to the President, said the protest was surprising considering Fraser has been arranging appointments to speak with students on tuition for weeks.

When the student union began running a campaign at that time calling on Fraser to discuss tuition, Trahearne said Fraser had instructed his administrative staff to make the time for students. Six students have taken him up on the offer so far, though about 15 have visited Fraser in the office.

“Just to be fair to the students, up until about two weeks before last Friday, as a matter of normal course, the President wasn’t available on the issue of tuition, because it’s [University Vice-President (Academic)] Doug Owram’s concern,” he said.
He suggested since the tuition decision is ultimately that of the Board of Governors, a body that is largely independent from the administration, the students might have more success lobbying the members of that body.

Although Fraser is an integral part of the process that develops the tuition procedures, Trahearne said “it would be a misunderstanding to think the president would take a remarkably different view than one of the vice-presidents. It would never be too safe to be carrying forward a view that your boss doesn’t agree with.”

(Graphic from http://www.durex.com/index.html)

LONDON, ONT. (CUP) — The results are in, Quebec loves love and more 14-year-olds are getting laid.
Durex Canada recently released a survey revealing sexuality trends among Canadian youth.
The poll surveyed 2,000 people nationally between the ages of 18 to 29, said Barbara Case, senior consultant of Decima Research, the company that conducted the survey.
Nationally, 43 per cent of Canadian teens do the horizontal polka at least once a week, but, in Ontario, only 37 per cent get laid on a weekly basis, making Ontario the most sexually deprived province in Canada.
“That’s not enough – it’s a shame,” said second-year University of Western Ontario student Derrick Johnston, who gave credit to the sexuality class he is now attending for his insights into sex.
Overall, 39 per cent of teenagers questioned lost their virginity because they were in love, 20 per cent get some sweet loving after the first week of a relationship and Quebec youth are more apt to make whoopee at a younger age than kids in other provinces.
The survey also revealed that Canadian youth are having more sex when they are younger. Sixteen per cent of those polled were under 14 for their first time and 38 per cent were between the ages of 15-17. Quebec seems to be the most sex-crazed province, as the study revealed that the province’s teens tend to be the most likely to lose their virginity at a younger age.
“I used to get it more when I was younger,” said fourth-year sociology student Andrea, who declined to give her last name, adding, “You get tired of the walk of shame after a one night stand.”
“The whole purpose of doing the survey is to raise the profile of the issue,” said Ted Conley, vice-president of consumer marketing at Durex. “People should abstain before they can handle the consequences.”
“This is one sphere of student life the [University Students’ Council] should get involved in, now or later,” joked Student Council President Chris Sinal.
* 42 per cent of females do the hanky panky for the first time between the ages of 15-17 as opposed to 25 per cent of males.
* 76 per cent of the youths surveyed use condoms with a new bed buddy.
* 27 per cent of the respondents in the prairies wait until marriage to do the nasty.
* 37 per cent of Quebecers said that if they had to wait for sex after the first week in a relationship, they would be more likely to shack up with a new partner.

MONTREAL (CUP) — “Keep your hands off our healthcare, our education, our water,” said Canadian activist and author Maude Barlow’s to multinational corporations Friday at McGill University.
Barlow, speaking at the “Directing the Winds of Change: Educational Perspectives on Globalization” conference, attacked the increase in privatization of the “commons” or public services, which she says is occurring at an alarming rate here and internationally due to multinational trade agreements.
“These trade agreements used to only talk about tariffs and taxes, and now they’re talking about health care and education and water : taking over whatever was left out of the market system,” Barlow said.
The volunteer chairperson for the Council of Canadians discussed the broader forces of privatization, describing her recent trip to the World Summit on International Development, as “just a fancy trade show : BMW, DeBeers, all had a huge display.” Such summits, she said, are permeated with the “Washington Consensus,” and “you’re either with us or your against us” notions. Barlow contends that this pressures world leaders to yield to corporate control and ratify trade agreements such as the FTAA and GATS (Global Agreement on Trades and Services).
The result, she said, is the “privatization of everything,” which leads federal governments to cut public funding so those affected turn to private support in exchange for advertising and influence.
“Every time you let the private sector build something that the public sector should be doing, you prove the right-wing politicians right.”
Barlow focused on the corporate sponsorship of schools, which she said has caused a generation of people to, “in Ralph Nader’s words, “?grow up corporate.'” According to Barlow, Canada’s charter schools and vouchers are “failing, yet people are ideologically committed because the public schools have rats in the cafeterias [due to government cuts]”. She believes that in this case, “what has replaced democracy is corporate rule.”
To the people in audience she appealed, “Those of you in higher education, we need you to do research on the FTAA and the GATS.”
Karina Younk, conference co-chair of the organizing Education Graduate Student Society, commented that the privatization of education is especially noticeable in faculty research programs, where research grants can take precedence over education.
“There’s a concern in the faculty that the goal of faculty members is to go out and get contracts … While the professor is madly filling out research grants, they’re not teaching,” Younk said.

OTTAWA (CUP) — Paul Martin created the disaster [and I] don’t know how he gets away with it, says an MP from her office in Vancouver.
The disaster that NDP MP Libby Davies is ranting about is the affordability of post-secondary education and the increasing debt she feels students are graduating into.
“The root of problem is that we’ve seen a massive retreat in federal funding to social programs. This is funding that used to go to post-secondary education,” she said.
According to Davies, when the Liberals took power in 1993 former finance minister Paul Martin, immediately cut “billions of dollars out of the [Canadian Health and Social Transfer (CHST)] plan.”
The CHST is presently a $37.5 billion federal transfer fund earmarked for provincial health care, social assistance and post-secondary education. In 1993, when the Liberals rose to power Martin’s department hacked billions out of it and over the decade, Davies’ office estimates, by and large federal support to the provinces for post-secondary education is down 34 per cent.
“I have never seen such a fundamental assault on programs as under the Liberals,” she said. “They [Liberals] speak on both sides of their mouths. I’ve heard them say the future is knowledge based. Yet they are starving the system and placing a higher and higher burden on students to get through the system.”
A system, she believes, is forcing students into arrears.
“They’re being forced to borrow more and more money and are graduating into massive debt,” she said. “This put students in an impossible situation [and creates] a lot of anxiety and stress,”
Davies estimates that the average student debt rose from $8,000 in 1990 to more than $25,000 in 2001.
Additionally, the MP from Vancouver East feels that because of dwindling funding from the federal government, “some provinces will use this as a further cover to make cuts of their own.”
While she admits that some provinces, like Quebec, are doing better than others, both the provinces and the federal governments need to get together.
“It’s easy for the provinces to say screw you,” she said.
“We need to create a partnership,” she adds, stressing that this debate is very similar to the on-going health care funding debate. “There is a huge hole in the system with the provinces. They need lead from federal government.”
If funding isn’t increased she thinks institution will be forced to move towards the private sector.
“Privatization is a very bad trend,” she said, using the numerous research chairs that have been set up across the country as an example. “The marketplace is beginning to dictate curriculum.”
She offers a simple solution to generating more funds.
“It’s only a matter of what the priorities are in the federal budget,” she explains. “It was a terrible mistake that the Liberals capitulated to the Alliance [and] brought in massive tax breaks.”
“That’s lost revenue.”
She believes that this money, including “the surplus that exists could be dedicated to post-secondary education.”
And what would Davies do if she found herself in power?
“I would look at ideas of establishing a department that has a much clearer mandate,” she said.
“The NDP has called for a tuition freeze [:] At some point we have to move towards free tuition.”
“Yes it’s affordable, it’s just a question of what the political priorities are.”