Canadian Federation of Students

Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Students across Canada are marking the National Day of Remembrance and Action to End Violence Against Women by organising events on- and off-campus in all regions today.

"On December 6 we mark the day that 14 women were murdered on their campus 22 years ago simply because they were women," said Roxanne Dubois, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "Across the country, students are organising vigils and awareness events to highlight the struggle to end all violence against women."

Students continue to play a key role in the fight to end violence against women. The long-standing No Means No campaign provides the tools and materials to identify instances of sexism, date rape, assault and other forms of violence against women and to challenge violent behaviour and attitudes. In addition, the campaign seeks to expose attempts at victim-blaming from authority figures and other sources in cases of sexual assaults on campus.

The Canadian Federation of Students will be launching a new website for its No Means No campaign.

"The No Means No campaign has long been a tool for students to engage their peers and lead the fight to end violence against women on their campus and in their communities," added Dubois. "The new website will provide campus activists with even more tools to tackle one of the most important issues that women face."

The No Means No website can be found at www.nomeansno.ca/en.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organisation, uniting more than one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927.

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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

A new study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives challenges the conventional wisdom that the public heavily subsidizes post-secondary education. Paid in Full: Who Pays for University Education in BC calculates the full financial contribution that students make towards their post-secondary degrees in British Columbia, taking into account two ways in which students pay:

- Upfront through tuition fees; and

- After graduation through higher income taxes (university graduates generally have higher incomes and therefore pay more taxes).

The study compares students' total payments for their degrees to the cost of providing undergraduate education in BC and finds that, as a group, university graduates pay the costs of their education - and more:

- Women with an undergraduate degree contribute, on average, $106,000 more to the public treasury over their working careers than women with only a high school diploma;

- University-educated men contribute $159,000 more to the public treasury than men with only a high school diploma;

- In contrast, a four-year undergraduate degree costs $50,630, of which tuition fees make up 40 per cent.
"Despite the current high levels of youth unemployment, the reality is that university graduates are more likely to be employed at full-time jobs, and experience shorter spells of unemployment than their peers with high school diplomas," says economist and study author Iglika Ivanova.

"Graduates earn more and pay higher income taxes as a result. The extra tax revenues are, in effect, a form of payment that students make for their education and should be recognized as such."

The report calls on the BC government to rethink the current approach to financing higher education, which puts increasing pressure on students and their families to pay upfront through high tuition fees.

"Upfront student payment for education - in the form of tuition fees - should be reduced. Education funding should instead be recouped through the additional taxes paid by university graduates through increases in progressive taxes," says Zach Crispin, Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students - BC. "High tuition fees are unfair and unnecessary, and compromise access to education for those who face financial barriers in their youth."

"The public treasury reaps a substantial payoff from higher education in terms of extra taxes that graduates pay," notes Cindy Oliver, president of the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of BC. "Expanding public investment in university education is economically feasible and it will ensure that our province is well-positioned to succeed in the knowledge economy."

"It is important to note that while those with post-secondary degrees and certificates earn more on average, some individuals with higher education earn less than the average high school graduate," cautions Ivanova. "A progressive income tax system is sensitive to these individual differences and will ensure that the cost is pooled over all graduates."

Related Link: Paid in Full Update: Who Pays for University Education in BC?

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Canadian Federation of Students

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Students call on the federal government to honour the Treaty rights guaranteed to Aboriginal students to access post-secondary education. Despite rising tuition fees in many provinces, the Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP) has been capped at two per cent growth since 1996. This has prevented tens of thousands of Aboriginal students from attending college or university.

"If the federal government is serious about providing Aboriginal students with the opportunity to get the skills and training they need to participate in the Canadian economy, it should increase funding available to students who are ready to attend college or university," said Patrick Smoke, Aboriginal Students' Representative for the Canadian Federation of Students. "The PSSSP has been shown to be a very successful program, but it is dramatically short on funds."

Due to the funding cap on the PSSSP, approximately 20,000 eligible students are currently on a waiting list to get funding to continue their studies. First Nations and Inuit communities are forced to make extremely difficult decisions about who to fund, and for how much, using limited funds. In addition, Metis and non-status students receive no funding to pursue their education.

"Above and beyond the moral and legal obligation of the federal government to fund Aboriginal Students access to education, ensuring Aboriginal students' right to education would have a significant impact on the Canadian economy," added Smoke. "The federal government must lift the funding cap on the PSSSP and deliver on long-time promises to Aboriginal Peoples."

In one week, on February 1, students from across the country will hold a National Student Day of Action to call for increased access to post-secondary education for all students. Students will be holding actions and rallies in several Canadian cities including Halifax, Ottawa, Toronto, Regina and Vancouver to reduce tuition fees, drop student debt and increase education funding.

For more information on the February 1 National Student Day of Action, see www.educationisaright.ca.

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Canadian Federation of Students

Friday, October 14, 2011

Students will analyze the 2010-11 Actuarial Report released by the Federal Government that demonstrates that Canada is soon to surpass its own regulations in how much student debt it can loan. Student debt in Canada has nearly reached a record-high $15 billion and, without government action, will continue to climb.

"Mounting costs and a lack of a federal vision for post-secondary education means that we are on the verge of bankrupting a generation," said Roxanne Dubois, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "Students will offer their solutions to this extremely pressing issue on Monday morning."


What: Students will outline their vision for post-secondary education
Where: Charles Lynch Press Gallery, Centre Block, Parliament Hill
When: 9:30am, Monday, October 17
Who: Representatives from the Canadian Federation of Students


The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organization, uniting more that one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organizations have represented students in Canada since 1927.

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Canadian Federation of Students

Friday, October 07, 2011

On this day - International Day for Decent Work- students urge the federal government to commit to improving working conditions and opportunities for youth in Canada.

"Young people and students were among the first to experience the effects of the global financial crisis and currently face great economic challenges," said Roxanne Dubois, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students "With the rising cost of tuition, record-high student debt and an increasingly unstable job market, Canada is setting up the next generation for failure."

Today, students are no longer able to pay for their education through student summer jobs. In addition, students who are fortunate enough to find employment are rarely able to do so in a field that is related to their studies and many are faced with low wages and poor working environments that offer few benefits and sometimes unsafe conditions.

"We cannot expect youth to contribute to the economy by rewarding them with low-paying and unstable jobs," added Dubois. "What we need is well-resourced public services such as youth employment programs and accessible post-secondary education to give youth a fair chance."

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organisation, uniting more than one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927.

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Canadian Federation of Students

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Legislation re-introduced today to amend the Copyright Act ignores, once again, the majority of Canadians who oppose anti-circumvention provisions and will undermine students' access to, and use, of copyrighted works.

"The government has shown disregard for the public's concerns raised during Bill C-32 public consultations by re-introducing an identical bill," said Roxanne Dubois, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "Anti-circumvention provisions will seriously undermine students', teachers' and the general public's use of copyrighted works."

Bill C-11 will again propose a reasonable expansion of the definition of "fair dealing", the right to the good faith and limited use of copyrighted works. However, the anti-circumvention provisions found in the bill fundamentally undermine fair dealing rights. The provisions would make it illegal to circumvent a digital lock even if fair dealing allows the copyrighted work's use. Similar provisions contained within the United States Digital Millennium Copyright Act have largely been regarded as failures, restricting users' rights while providing little protection against infringement.

"Students and other members of the education sector use and create copyrighted materials on a daily basis," added Dubois. "Students have concerns that overly restrictive regulations will lead to higher access fees paid by post-secondary institutions and, ultimately, by students".

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. 

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OTTAWA, April 27 - Students have graded the post-secondary education priorities of each of the parties in advance of the May 2 federal election. The New Democrats and Liberals scored above average, and "A" and "B" respectively. Unfortunately, the Conservatives need to study harder, as they received an "F" in the Canadian Federation of Students' 2011 Political Party Report Card. Luckily they have a week to improve their grade by improving their platform.

"The parties that received the highest grades were the ones whose priorities reflect students' call for a national vision for post-secondary education and have a strategy to address student debt," said Dave Molenhuis, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "The NDP and Liberals have proposals to make education more affordable, while the Conservatives fall far behind."

The Political Party Report Card provides an overview and analysis of the post-secondary education platforms of the five top Canadian political parties. Each party was graded in six categories:

• National vision and funding of post-secondary education
• Student debt
• Aboriginal Post-Secondary Education
• Research and Innovation
• Measuring Success
• Copyright Reform

"The Conservative Party, despite having made substantial investments while in government, has not made post-secondary education a priority in this election," added Molenhuis. "This report card provides students and their families with detailed information on where the parties stand on post-secondary education."

The 2011 Political Party Report Card can be downloaded from www.VoteEducation.ca. Grades can be reassessed based on any announced platform changes. This will be reflected in a statement by the Federation and website update.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organisation, uniting more than one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927. 

Students proposed a series of recommendations for Bill C-32 the Copyright Modernization Act to ensure it strikes a fair balance between the rights of users and creators, in a submission to Parliament yesterday.

"Education and innovation depends on fair access to copyrighted works," said Dave Molenhuis, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "A few simple amendments would ensure fair copyright for all Canadians."

The recommendations, submitted by the Canadian Federation of Students at the request of the Special Legislative Committee studying C-32, focused on ensuring students, teachers and other members of the post-secondary education community have fair access to copyrighted works and that the bill supports innovative and creative educational practices. In particular, the submission recommends that the expansion of the right to fair dealing–to include education–proposed in Bill C-32 be adopted. It also proposes a series of amendments be made to the digital locks provisions to stop Canadians from being criminalised for their legal uses of copyrighted works.

"Educational fair dealing will grant students and teachers access to copyrighted materials while ensuring that creators continue to be compensated fairly for the use of their work," added Molenhuis. "However, the welcome expansion to fair dealing and all other user rights are undermined by C-32's unwavering protection of digital locks."
In addition, the submission recommended changes to a number of the special exceptions proposed in Bill C-32 and recommended that proposals to reduce statutory damages and adopt a notice-and-notice regime for internet service provider liability be adopted.

The submission can be downloaded from the Federation's website at www.cfs-fcee.ca/copyright.

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.

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