town hall meeting – The Concordian

The meeting discussed issues surrounding the hikes, including academic freedom and barriers for low-income students

The Concordia Student Union (CSU) held a town hall meeting to address the proposed tuition hikes for international students on Nov. 17 in the Hall building. The meeting featured speakers from the CSU, the Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) and the Association for the Voice of Education (AVEQ), as well as students who wished to voice their opinion on the subject.

The CSU was firm in its decision to oppose the proposed hikes and called for the university’s administration to “uphold a minimum standard of transparency in its decisions which will have a direct financial impact on its students,” as originally stated in an open letter on the CSU website.

The town hall meeting attracted dozens of students and the CSU distributed stickers, buttons and pamphlets containing basic information about the tuition hikes. One of the speakers, Aloyse Muller, the CSU’s external affairs and mobilization coordinator, urged students to sign a petition in opposition of the tuition increase.

Muller said the hikes are a “grave concern” and “the Concordia administration has displayed no transparency whatsoever in the matter.” Like many of the speakers, he discussed many aspects of not only the tuition hike proposal, but also Quebec’s decision in 2014 to completely deregulate certain programs for international students, including science, business, engineering and computer science.

He pointed out the university has yet to release official figures regarding the amount by which tuition will increase and said the proposed cohort pricing system poses a threat to academic freedom.

The cohort system guarantees international students will be charged the same tuition price throughout the entirety of their program at Concordia, as a university spokesperson, Chris Mota, told The Concordian last week. However, the university has not disclosed whether students will be subject to varying tuition fees if they transfer programs or require extra time to finish their degree.

The school has also not explained what would happen if students in regulated programs took elective courses from deregulated programs, said Muller.

Muller said a common argument is international students’ education should not be subsidized or regulated because they do not contribute to Quebec’s economy through taxes—but he said it is a misconception.

“This is a common myth,” Muller said. “International students pay GST, HST and income taxes. They bring money into the economy.”

Pamphlets handed out at the town hall meeting stated 52 per cent of international students stay in Quebec for more than three years after graduating, paying income taxes and thus strengthening the Quebec economy. For this reason, among others, the CSU believes international tuition should remain regulated by the provincial government.

The organization demanded the university release a comprehensive, program-based breakdown of all fees on its website, release detailed information regarding the cohort pricing system, freeze all tuition hikes being accelerated for approval and to engage more transparently with the student body.

The Concordia Student Union held a town hall meeting with guest speakers Monday night, about the much-anticipated education summit that will take place at the end of February.

The CSU wanted to facilitate an open conversation about four major themes that will be discussed at the summit next month, and what quality of education means to Concordia students.

“Now it’s an opportunity for students to voice their vision on universities,” said VP external Simon-Pierre Lauzon of the CSU.

The four main topics that will be discussed at the summit are quality of education, accessibility of education, governance and finance, and research and contribution to society. These main themes were the main points on the agenda to discuss throughout the town hall meeting.

Lauzon stated in the meeting that he has decided to hold an online vote before the summit so that students can vote on different student perspectives and choose the views which best represent them. The website itself is not yet online.

Lauzon clarified that this meeting wasn’t just an information session, but to hear students’ opinions and to incorporate their ideas into what will be brought to the summit.

The floor was open, allowing students to ask questions or raise discussion points throughout the meeting.

“In my opinion, education should be accessible for everyone in Quebec,” Lauzon said.

The topic of having accessible education came up several times, in regards to the rights of students with disabilities, gender, race, age and financial state.

The Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec President Martine Desjardins was one of the guest speakers at the meeting. Desjardins discussed the pressure she is putting on the government with her concerns on tuition and the quality of education.

“We are not in favour for inflammation. We want the government to set back from their position and realize they can’t keep asking students to pay more and pay without a proper evaluation,” Desjardins said.

She went on to say that Concordia students aren’t represented enough through the Board of Governors, which she sees as a major issue.

Lauzon stated that for the next eight days he will be campaigning and open to hear student ideas on a range of topics.