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March 2010
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Vol 1, Issue 8
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The Communiqué
OUSA's March Update
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Dear OUSA Members, (OUSA President | Dan Moulton)
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As students across the Province return from reading week,
all eyes are focused on the provincial budget to be tabled in March. Early
indications are that the government will be emphasizing issues of
accountability, credit transfer, e-learning and international student
enrollment. At the same time, the government seems to be considering announcing
one-year stopgap funding for the sector, thus delaying a long-term funding
announcement until next year.
Looking ahead, OUSA is gearing up for a Spring
General Assembly at the University of Western Ontario. Student leaders from
across our institutions will meet to discuss student priorities and debate a
new long-term plan for the organization.
Following that, OUSA will host its annual Partners
in Higher Education Dinner. I'm pleased to announce that Dr. Joy Mighty,
President of the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, and Dr.
Julia Christensen Hughes, Dean of Business at the University of Guelph, will
give the keynote address on issues in teaching and learning, based on a
groundbreaking book they have recently co-authored.
Finally, on behalf of everyone at OUSA, I'd
like to wish Paul, our outgoing Director of Research and Policy Analysis, all
the best in his future endeavours. His commitment and dedication to OUSA will
be sadly missed. Good luck, Paul!
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OUSA Launches Food for Thought Campaign
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For nearly three weeks, from March 8, 2010 to March 26, 2010,
students at four Ontario universities will undertake an experiment: They
will attempt to eat a healthy, balanced diet while spending only $7.50 a
day on food - the same amount allocated for food by the Ontario Student
Assistance Program (OSAP).
Entitled "Food For Thought", the experiment will be co-ordinated by
the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA). Participants will
blog daily on their experiences at www.ousa.ca/foodforthought/.
The OSAP need assessment uses a standard living allowance for every
student living away from home. It totals $34.72 per day, of which $7.50
is allocated to food costs and the rest is meant for shelter, public
transit, and miscellaneous expenses. Over a year, this living allowance
adds up to $12,540 - about $3,000 less than the poverty line for a city
of over 100,000 people.
"Students across the Province are looking forward to the results,"
said OUSA President Dan Moulton. "Given that OSAP expects students to
live below the poverty line, I expect our participants will have a great
deal of difficulty eating a healthy, balanced diet on only $7.50 a day,
or only $2.50 a meal."
Taking part are Nicholas Gibson-Lockhart from Wilfrid Laurier
University, Andrew Beach from the University of Western Ontario, Rachel
Crane from Brock University, and Gabrielle Koerber and Sarah Baker from
Queen's University. For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
Alvin Tedjo, OUSA Director of Communications & Public Relations,
work: (416) 341-9948, cell: (647) 669-6885 |
Partners in Higher Education Dinner Keynote Speakers Announcement
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OUSA is pleased to announce that Dr. Joy Mighty and Dr. Julia
Christensen Hughes will deliver this year's keynote address at OUSA's
annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner on Wednesday, March 31 at the
Sutton Place Hotel.
Dr. Joy Mighty is the President of the Society for Teaching and
Learning in Higher Education and Director of the Centre for Teaching and
Learning at Queen's University. She has a wealth of experience and
expertise as a teacher, educational developer, researcher and
consultant, with a special interest in equity and diversity issues. With
over 30 years practical experience, her academic and professional
background spans several countries and levels of education.
Dr. Julia Christensen Hughes is Dean of the College of Management and
Economics at the University of Guelph. She is a tireless advocate for
change within higher education and has helped facilitate many national,
provincial and local events focused on improving the quality of teaching
and learning. Her work on academic integrity has garnered national and
international attention.
For many years, Joy and Julia have devoted themselves to improving
teaching and learning on university campuses across Canada. Their
commitment to education has directly and indirectly benefited countless
undergraduate students. The two have recently collaborated on a book
entitled Taking Stock: Research on Teaching and Learning in Higher
Education, which not only examines what we know about teaching and
learning, but also provides recommendations on where we must go from
here.
OUSA's annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner brings together
stakeholders from across the post-secondary sector to discuss common
issues. Attendees include, students, faculty, administrators,
researchers, politicians and bureaucrats. For information on attending
or sponsoring the dinner, please email communications@ousa.on.ca
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Executive Director Update | Alexi White
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On the advocacy front, OUSA met for the first time with
Nancy Naylor, the new Assistant Deputy Minister for the Post-Secondary
Education Branch in the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. While
attending McMaster University, Ms. Naylor was part of the Student
Representative Assembly and has a strong understanding of student issues and
the education sector. In addition, OUSA met with two Assistant Deputy Ministers
in the Ministry of Finance to discuss student concerns over education tax
credits, tuition, and funding issues.
OUSA is also participating in a coalition spearheaded by the
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Association and formed to advocate
for greater government investment in post-secondary education. The coalition
includes groups representing students, staff and faculty and will continue to
work together on common issues of concern up until the next Provincial
Election.
Finally, OUSA is excited to launch our Food For Thought
campaign next week which, for three weeks, will see students at four OUSA
schools live on $7.50 a day for food - the same amount OSAP allocates for food
in its living allowance. The aim
of the campaign is to raise awareness of the many deficiencies in the OSAP system.
Hope to see a lot of you out at General Assembly.
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The DORPA Report (Director of Research & Policy Analysis | Paul Bien)
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February is always a great month at OUSA, because it's the time of year, along with March, when so much of our work comes to fruition. During this month I completed the final report on Focus Groups and presented the results to steering committee, achieving one of OUSA's goals this year to conduct our own primary research. This is also the month saw the presentation of our Budget Submission to the government, which has been discussed above. These are both big projects that have yielded great results for OUSA.
More behind the scenes, February has been a busy month for those students and writing our policies on the topics of Students with Disabilities, Differentiation, Alternative Cost Recovery and more. The papers are being finalized as I write this and will reach General Assembly delegates at the end of next week. It's exciting times to be an OUSA delegate!
On a sadder note, this is the last Communiqué you will be reading from me as your Director of Research and Policy Analysis (DoRPA). In fact, as you read this I will have started my new position with the Minister of Education, and OUSA will be searching high and low for my replacement.
I posted a more complete "goodbye" message on the OUSA Blog which can be read HERE, but let me say that it has been an honour and a privilege to serve as your DoRPA for these past almost two years. There are too many people I have worked with to properly say goodbye to them all, but I will just say thank you and good luck to everyone in the sector in continuing to work hard to create a more accessible, affordable, accountable higher education of the highest quality!
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The Communications Post (Director of Communications & Public Relations | Alvin Tedjo)
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There are a number of projects on the go for the month of March, and it doesn't get any easier with the departure of our friend and colleague Paul Bien. I wish him well in his new job and hope he doesn't forget his friends at OUSA.
First up this month we launch our Food for Thought campaign, where we have 5 students at 4 institutions attempting to live on the OSAP needs assessed rate of $7.50 a day for food. They will be blogging and video blogging (or vlogging) on our site daily. So make sure to check that out, I promise it shall be interesting and thought provoking. We have received some very interested media requests so far, from Thunder Bay to Toronto. Follow the campaign and watch our participants in this experiment, starting March 8th until March 26th.
In the middle of the month, between March 19th and 21st, OUSA will be hosting its Spring General Assembly at the University of Western Ontario in London. We will also be hosting an Alumni Event on the Saturday night, highlighting OUSA's 15th Anniversary as an organization.
To end off March and the bulk of the academic year, OUSA is hosting its 6th annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner at the Sutton Place hotel on Wednesday, March 31st, 2010. This year's guest speakers are highlighted in the article at the beginning of this communique, and they will have an interesting discussion in Teaching and Learning, while trying to follow-up last year's keynote speaker: Bob Rae.
There are lots of events this month and frequent updates of our campaigns and conferences on our website, so check it early, and often!
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Alvin Tedjo
Director of Communications & Public Relations
OUSA | Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance
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OUSA's Partners Dinner
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OUSA's Annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner is set for Wednesday, March 31st, 2010 at the Sutton Place Hotel in Toronto, Ontario. Last year, OUSA's keynote speaker was former Ontario Premier Bob Rae. Don't miss out on this year's exciting event, save the date of March 31st to attend OUSA's Partners Dinner. More information to come soon!
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NOTE: This event is often referred to as PiHED (Partners in Higher Education Dinner)
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