After the whirlwind that was this year's Student Advocacy Conference, December seemed comparably quiet and relatively short, though with a number of important highlights.

In early December, OUSA was pleased to accept an invitation from the Ontario Council of Academic Vice-Presidents (OCAV) to present our ideas for improving support programs for international students. Our suggestions were warmly received by provosts from across the Province, and we will continue to work with the OCAV sub-committee on internationalization to see our ideas implemented. We also had an opportunity to meet with the Ontario Minister of Revenue to discuss the future of post-secondary tax credits and progress on the government's 2007 commitment to replace these credits with up-front grants. Finally, we sat down with staff from the Council of Ontario Universities to discuss progress on tackling barriers to university-to-university credit transfer.

Back in the office, the period of relative calm was perfect for completion of our upcoming report on access to higher education for underrepresented groups. The report is co-authored by the College Student Alliance and Ontario Student Trustees' Association and brings together the latest research on accessibility issues, student testimonials, and recommendations for improvement in a range of issues from early outreach programs to financial assistance to primary and secondary school outreach strategies.

-Alexi White

I hope everyone had a restful and relaxing holiday over the break, and that the New Year is starting off right. Prior to our holiday break, much of December was spent catching up on projects that had taken a back seat to the Fall General Assembly and the Student Advocacy Conference through November. Preparation of our new policies for Spring General Assembly is now in full gear. Chris Rudnicki from Queen's is leading our new project on Aboriginal students and Joe Finkle from McMaster is updating our position on ancillary fees, while President Meaghan Coker and Nick Soave from Waterloo are working on new additions to our student success policies. Overlapping with the last two projects, the Campus Research Council is continuing our analysis of the role that ancillary fees are playing in funding student services on our campuses.

 

We also had an opportunity in December to attend an event sponsored by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario which brought in Tim O'Neill, the author of a recent review of Nova Scotia's universities. He spoke about his report and recommendations for tuition and financial aid, which certainly produced some lively and interesting debate with sector stakeholders around accessibility and affordability. Finally, we finished preparation of OUSA's submission to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, and finished the release of our comprehensive accessibility strategy which is now in its final feedback stage.

 

January will likely be mostly devoted to continued development of our new policies and preparation for the upcoming release of our submissions on access and internationalization.

-Sam Andrey

The start of a new calendar year is always an exciting time. Post-secondary education in Ontario is no different. As we begin a new term and students go back to class, OUSA has been working very hard on a number of projects.

First off is the budget submission for the upcoming year. Every year, Ontarians are invited to make submissions and presentations for the provincial government to consider for its budget process. This year is no different, as OUSA will be making its presentation in the weeks to come, and have completed a 16 page document titled - An Educated Investment: Advancing Post-Secondary Education. This document will be made available online after the presentations are made.

The office is also a buzz with the early stages of planning its seventh annual Partners in Higher Education Dinner. The date has been finalized as Thursday, March 31st, 2011. Details and registration are coming soon, but save the date so you don't miss out on this marquee event.

It is also an exciting time in student government, as January marks the traditional start to the student government election season. This is an important time as ever to be engaged in student issues on and off campus, at universities and in the province as a whole. Stay tuned for another exciting year!

-Alvin Tedjo

After a refreshing and relaxing holiday break in December, Sam and I have been diving back into research at the OUSA office. With the Spring General Assembly fast approaching, Steering Committee members have begun work on a number of policy papers and the Home Office is doing their best to provide research assistance. Over the next month, I expect to be providing support for the policy papers on Aboriginal education and cost inflation. In addition, with assistance from student delegates, I am looking forward to organizing more on-campus focus groups with students. We hope this process will help keep OUSA's research grounded and give us new insights into the post-secondary education issues we are tackling this semester.