Audited Financial Statements 2012... Great news!
The DSU held it's annual general meeting on Feb. 29, 2012 at which time the audited financial statements were presented.
The DSU is in great financial shape and got an unqualified report from our auditor.
Audited financial statement are available year round for the inspection of our members at both DSU offices.
Audited Financial Statements 2012... Great news!
The DSU held it's annual general meeting on Feb. 29, 2012 at which time the audited financial statements were presented.
The DSU is in great financial shape and got an unqualified report from our auditor.
Audited financial statement are available year round for the inspection of our members at both DSU offices.
Audited Financial Statements 2012... Great news!
The DSU held it's annual general meeting on Feb. 29, 2012 at which time the audited financial statements were presented.
The DSU is in great financial shape and got an unqualified report from our auditor.
Audited financial statement are available year round for the inspection of our members at both DSU offices.
BC’s tuition fee problem is getting worse
For Immediate Release
BC’s tuition fee problem is getting worse
VANCOUVER—The biggest financial barrier to education only got bigger this year in BC. Tuition fees have climbed over $4,800 at BC universities, according to a new study released today by Statistics Canada. For the tenth consecutive year tuition fees in British Columbia will increase.
“Recent polling shows overwhelming support for reducing tuition fees, but the BC government isn’t listening,” said Zach Crispin, Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students-British Columbia. “Post-secondary education in BC is a debt sentence.”
Average student debt in British Columbia is estimated to be over $27,000 after a four year program, the highest provincial average West of the Maritimes. With compound interest over a ten-year repayment period, that figure balloons to $34,000.
“A system of student loans places an unfair burden on low income and marginalized students by making them pay more for their education. This underscores the pressing need to restore the BC grants program,” said Crispin.
Tuition fees are the single largest expense for most university and college students, and are increasing more than any other cost faced by students, having more than doubled since 2001. Higher tuition fees means more money out of pocket for working families in British Columbia.
More information is available at http://bit.ly/pRfD11
August 2011 polling on education issues in BC can be found at http://db.tt/QCuWLD7
The Canadian Federation of Students-BC is composed of 150,000 students in British Columbia from 17 university and college students' unions. Post-secondary students in Canada have been represented by the Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organizations since 1927.
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For more information, please contact:
Zach Crispin, BC Chairperson at 604-733-1880
Ian Boyko, Research and Communications Officer at 604-733-1880
U-Pass Launched at Douglas Sept. 7
Groundbreaking U-Pass Program Off to a Great Start
VANCOUVER – Students from Vancouver Community College, Emily Carr University and Douglas College will be bussing into Douglas College’s New Westminster campus today to attend the official launch of the U-Pass BC program along with the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, Blair Lekstrom.
Students campaigned for years for a U-Pass that would include everyone and end TransLink’s discriminatory policy of charging some students three times more to ride the same bus as students with a U-Pass. The U-Pass BC is different from any other U-Pass program in Canada because now students from all institutions can enjoy the much-needed financial break of a U-Pass while also helping the environment.
“As a fourth year nursing student at VCC and a mother of three my family has to make every penny stretch. Now a days the only thing that isn’t a juggling act in my life is my U-Pass. The U-Pass means I know that I will be able to get to class, the library and everywhere I need to be.” said Charmaine Waters, student at Vancouver Community College.
Speaking at the announcement today will be External Relations Coordinator for the Douglas Students’ Union, Jillian Griffin. “Today’s announcement of Canada’s first standardized and universal U-Pass program is a great example of how important students are to building a transit culture in BC.” said Griffin.
On June 9, 2010 the Province announced Canada’s first standardised U-Pass Program for post-secondary students. The new program gives Metro Vancouver students access to a $30/month U-Pass, saving them over $50 per month and thousands of dollars over the course of their studies.
U-PASS COMING TO DOUGLAS SEPTEMBER 2011!
On June 16 the DSU and Douglas College signed the U-Pass agreement with Translink.
The DSU worked hard on behalf of it's members to lobby the government to include Douglas Students in the discounted U-Pass program and are happy to see it coming into place for our members.
Extensive contract talks delayed the implementation of the U-Pass program at DC.
In conjunction with the DSU, the College administration also put in many hours to negotiate the best possible contract and also to lay the foundation for the implementation of the program and effective distribution of the passes.
DSU 2011 Financial Audit... Great News!
The DSU held it's annual general meeting on Feb. 16, 2011 at which time the audited financial statements were presented.
The DSU is in great financial shape and got an unqualified report from our auditor.
Audited financial statement are available year round for the inspection of our members at both DSU offices.
DC students vote 94% YES on U-PASS!
Media Release
For Immediate Release
December 8, 2010
Historic U-Pass Referendums at VCC and Douglas College
VANCOUVER –Douglas Students’ Union and The Students’ Union of Vancouver Community College are proud to announce they have completed the largest student votes in their history. On Wednesday, December 1 the Douglas Students’ Union completed a successful U-Pass Referendum with over 94% of students voting “Yes” to the new program. The Students’ Union of Vancouver Community College completed their U-Pass on the same day with 97% of students voting “Yes”.
“The Students’ Union of Vancouver Community College is excited that after years of work our students will be among the first to have Canada’s only provincially funded and standardised U-Pass program.” Said Carolyn Ehman, Chairperson of the Students’ Union of Vancouver Community College.
“This vote shows students strong support of the U-Pass BC program. This program is going to help tens of thousands of students and wouldn’t have been possible without the continued support of Transportation and Infrastructure Minister, Shirley Bond.” Said Jerin Mece, College Relations Coordinator, Douglas Students’ Union.
The U-Pass BC will be implemented at Emily Carr University and Vancouver Community College in early 2011. The U-Pass BC will begin at Douglas College Spring 2011.
On June 9, 2010 the Province announced Canada’s first standardised U-Pass Program for post-secondary students. The new program will give Metro Vancouver students access to a $30/month U-Pass, saving them over $50 per month and thousands of dollars over the course of their studies.
Students and teachers object to Access Copyright cash grab
Canadian Federation of Students
Thursday, August 12, 2010
OTTAWA--Students and teachers say that a tariff being proposed by Access Copyright – an organisation that licenses literary works to businesses and public institutions – would infringe privacy rights and burden students with tens of millions of dollars in new fees each year.
Access Copyright proposed the tariff to Canada's Copyright Board this spring – the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) and the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) filed a joint objection yesterday. The Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic will be representing the CFS and CAUT before the Copyright Board.
"The excessive fees sought by Access Copyright would unfairly burden students and the public post-secondary system," said Dave Molenhuis, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "The proposal treats students as cash cows and ignores the fair dealing rights granted through the Copyright Act and affirmed by the Supreme Court of Canada."
The proposal would license the reproduction of copyrighted works at participating post-secondary institutions from 2011 to 2014. Under the current tariff, institutions pay a flat fee of $3.39 per full-time equivalent student, plus ten cents per page copied for use in a course-pack. The proposal would eliminate the per-use fee, and impose a flat fee of $35 for college students and $45 for university students - an unjustified increase of between 350 and 400%.
In addition to increasing the amount of the tariff, the proposal would also greatly expand its ambit and require institutions to provide Access Copyright direct and unfettered access to all property, digital or physical, including institutional e-mail accounts, in order to surveil the use of literary works.
"Here we have a licensing agency asking for sweeping new powers that would require institutions grant unfettered entrance to universities and colleges, including direct access to faculty, librarian and student e-mail accounts, to monitor what's being used," said Paul Jones, a CAUT copyright expert.
"The tariff overreaches to the extent that it attempts to redefine copying to include simply posting a hyperlink to an already publicly available online article, and to double dip by charging for the use of works already paid for by the institution," he added.
The CFS is Canada's largest student organisation, uniting more that one-half million students in all ten provinces.
CAUT is the national voice of more than 65,000 academic and general staff at 121 universities and colleges across Canada.
Public education, not so public anymore–says OECD
Canadian Federation of Students
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
OTTAWA--Nearly 50% of funding for Canada's post-secondary institutions comes from private sources according to a report released today by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
"High tuition fees have replaced government funding to such an extent that nearly half of the funding for Canada's colleges and universities comes from private sources," said David Molenhuis, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "This increased reliance on user fees has caused federal student loan debt to hit $15 billion this month."
According to Education at a Glance, an annual report published by the OECD, Canada ranks highly for its total expenditure on post-secondary education. However this is due largely to its reliance on private funding, which makes up nearly 50% of its revenue. In conjunction with the report Statistics Canada has reported that first-time bachelor's degree graduation rate is only 34% in Canada, compared with the OECD average of 38%. While public funding has increased slightly in recent years, private spending has risen at a dramatic pace. This has led to a decrease in the share of public funding for colleges and universities of more than five percent, making Canada one of only five countries to have seen such a dramatic shift.
"The benefits of investing in post-secondary education far outweigh the costs," added Molenhuis. "Increasing core funding and reducing tuition fees are both within the government's reach."
The Report finds that the Government of Canada earns more than double its investment in post-secondary education through increased income tax revenues. In addition it reports that higher education offers a wide range of additional benefits including reduced health-care costs amongst graduates, and greater expenditures on goods and services which generate additional tax revenue, and spur wider economic benefits.
The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organisation, uniting more that one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927.