Student protesters march on N.L. legislature, demanding affordable education | CBC News

Students Advocate for Affordable Education in St. John’s

Under heavy rain in St. John’s on Wednesday, about 100 students gathered at Memorial University to advocate for free — or at least affordable — education for all students, domestic and international.

International student Nita Badaiki, who helped organize the St. John’s event — part of a national day of action under the slogan “Fight the Fees,” organized by the Canadian Federation of Students — said students are struggling under heavy costs.

“The weather sucks, but the tuition fees suck more,” she said Wednesday.

“Students are tired, students are suffering, students are stacking up debt.… People are really tired — even willing to stand in the rain to say they are tired.”

Marching for Affordable Education

She and others took shelter under roof in front of the MUN University Centre and next to the clock tower before marching at noon to Confederation Building, where they were joined by students from the College of the North Atlantic. On the other side of Newfoundland, at MUN’s Grenfell campus in Corner Brook, a similar protest was planned.

In St. John’s, John Harris, executive director of external affairs of MUN’s students’ union, rallied students and their supporters — some of them high school students — with a megaphone, yelling slogans like “Cut the fees!”

“We need to start looking at giving opportunities for young people to succeed here,” he told CBC News. “Or they’re going to find opportunities elsewhere.”

Mary Feltham, chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students in Newfoundland and Labrador, told CBC News many jobs in today’s economy require post-secondary education. If communities want to thrive, she said, everyone needs access to education, and that means lowering the barriers of entry.

“It’s not just affording our tuition, it’s also affording our housing, affording our food,” Feltham said. “And with all these financial burdens accumulating, a lot of people end up either sacrificing meals or sacrificing their education.”

Impact of High Tuition Fees

The protests follow a report last month from Newfoundland and Labrador’s auditor general, who found overspending by administration and management salaries that are among the highest at colleges and universities across the country.

MUN’s undergraduate tuition fees are $6,240 for domestic students and $20,790 for international students.

The cost of education is affecting graduate students too, says Sanazgoli Javanbakht, executive director of communications for MUN’s graduate students’ union.

Javanbakht says she’s received numerous emails from graduate students asking for more funding. When scholarships and grants don’t keep up with inflation and the cost of living, she said, students struggle to continue their studies.

Increasing funding for scholarships is an investment in the academic and industrial progress in the province, she said.

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SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. SDG 4: Quality Education

   • Target 4.1: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable, and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.
   • Target 4.3: By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational, and tertiary education, including university.
   • Target 4.5: By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, and children in vulnerable situations.
   • Target 4.A: Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability, and gender sensitive and provide safe, nonviolent, inclusive, and effective learning environments for all.
   • Indicator 4.1.1: Proportion of children and young people (a) in grades 2/3; (b) at the end of primary; and (c) at the end of lower secondary achieving at least a minimum proficiency level in (i) reading and (ii) mathematics, by sex.
   • Indicator 4.3.1: Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal education and training in the previous 12 months, by sex.
   • Indicator 4.5.1: Parity indices (female/male, rural/urban, bottom/top wealth quintile, and others such as disability status, indigenous peoples, and conflict-affected, as data become available) for all education indicators on this list that can be disaggregated.
   • Indicator 4.A.1: Proportion of schools with access to (a) electricity; (b) the Internet for pedagogical purposes; (c) computers for pedagogical purposes; (d) adapted infrastructure and materials for students with disabilities; (e) basic drinking water; (f) single-sex basic sanitation facilities; and (g) basic handwashing facilities (as per the WASH indicator definitions).

2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

   • Target 8.5: By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value.
   • Indicator 8.5.2: Unemployment rate, by sex, age, and persons with disabilities.

3. SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

   • Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic, and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion, or economic or other status.
   • Indicator 10.2.1: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income, by sex, age, and persons with disabilities.

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators