News Release Archive
HIGHER EDUCATION COMMISSION--CONCERN OVER STUDENT ACCESS ----------------------------------------------------------------- The federal government should not let recent moves by some provinces to limit student access to higher education go unpunished, says the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission (MPHEC). That recommendation will be made by the MPHEC when it appears before the senate sub-committee on post-secondary education in Halifax on Wednesday. The MPHEC is reacting to Quebec's announcement it intends to introduce higher fees for out-of-province students. British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Quebec also have put restrictions on loans available to students who want to study outside their home provinces. "These actions are not in the best interests of students or the country," interim MPHEC chair Dr. David Cameron said. A draft of the MPHEC report to the sub-committee includes a recommendation for the federal government to consider reducing funding resources for post-secondary education from provinces that restrict pan-Canadian mobility, either by charging excessive fees to out-of province students or restricting loans to students who study outside their home province. In the preamble to the recommendation, the report states: "The sharing of experiences and student life by people from all parts of the country is an important contribution to the education process, as well as to national unity. Any actions that militate against this mobility are bad for the nation." "Our students are already being hurt by higher tuition costs; they are burdened with increased debt, and now they are also facing threats to access and mobility." said Dr. Cameron, who is also a political science professor at Dalhousie University. He said the actions are short-sighted. "They are not in the best interests of the students or of the country. Increasingly our world is driven by knowledge-based industries. We want Canada to be able to compete. We want our children to have a decent future. We should all be working together to make that happen." "Instead, we seem to be facing new roadblocks. We are in danger of having education become a privilege of an elite, and of seeing regions and provinces pitted against each other," he said. The MPHEC is currently undertaking a study of barriers to post-secondary education, scheduled for completion in April. The MPHEC was formed in 1973 with members from the three Maritime provinces, including representative of the provincial governments, universities, students and the general public. "The MPHEC will bring to the sub-committee a broad view of the existing situation and its problems. We represent a cross-section of Maritimers and, for nearly 25 years, we have been helping the whole Maritime region in the efficient and effective allocation of education resources," Dr. Cameron said. -30- Contact: Dr. David Cameron 902-494-6626 trp Feb. 17, 1997 - 2:30 p.m.