Usage of the University of Victoria student food bank is at an all-time high following provincial cutbacks to B.C.’s student loan program coupled with the steady rise of tuition fees, according to the president of the UVic student society.
President James Coccola said the food bank has added a clothing bank to better meet student needs. “We’ve been hearing from a number of students saying things have become much more difficult for them in terms of being able to pay for rent, food and other things outside of tuition,” he said.
“The increased cost is simply reaching a point where they have to push other things out in order to afford school.”
A recent report released by Statistics Canada reported that B.C. has one of the highest tuition fees in the country, with students paying an average of $5,138 before living expenses — an increase of $196 since 2009.
Tuition in the province has continued to rise for nine consecutive years. However, the provincial loan program was cut by 28 per cent in 2009, according to the Canadian University Press.
In the same article, Ida Chong, B.C. minister of science and universities, said education is as much an individual investment as it is a public investment, causing controversy among students.
Students are now turning to parents as well as their student societies to make up the gap, and the problem is not limited to UVic, Coccola said.
Natasha Lallany said she took a job to pay for school but her marks have paid the price.
The fourth-year commerce student at the University of British Columbia said she is already $15,000 in debt and the number keeps rising.
“It just worries me because tuition is increasing and funding is decreasing so it makes university an almost unaffordable concept,” Lallany said.
She said she depends on the province’s student loan program and right now it’s “not nearly adequate enough.”
At Simon Fraser University, Olivia Smith is fortunate enough to be one of a small group of students not facing similar problems.
The second-year communications student said she relies on financial support from her parents to pay her tuition. But since the tuition increases and loan decreases she said she needs to look into dropping some classes to free up time for a job.
The UVic student society has encouraged students to participate in their “Shirts off our back” campaign. Students write their total debt on the back of a shirt and then the shirts are posted around campus, Coccola said. “It’s a very visual way to get the message across.”
He said campaigns are still in the planning stages, but come January they will kick into full swing. Meetings with the government officials and university administration are ongoing, he said.
David Molenhuis, the national chairperson for the Canadian Federation of Students, told the Vancouver Sun the establishment of federal education regulations are needed to ensure accessible, quality education and guaranteed funding.
The situation isn’t likely to improve as the Manitoban recently reported that the federal student loan program, which is supposed to last until 2014, is currently maxed out at $15 billion and in no position to help.