INSIDE DOUGLAS COLLEGE / AUGUST 7, 1990

 

 

Fees rise at College, Fall 1990

uition fee increases can not

be avoided unless other

ways of raising money are
found.

That’s what College president
Bill Day told members of the
Douglas College Student Society
when they voiced concerns about
an 11 per cent fee increase for stu-
dents.

The Douglas College Board
voted July 19 to increase tuition
and other student fees by 11 per
cent effective this September.

Before the final motion
passed, Board members addressed
a written brief from Douglas Col-
lege Students’ Society opposing
the increase, and responded to con-
cerns raised by key Society mem-
bers.

Norman Gludovatz, Univer-
sity Transfer Representative for the
Students’ Society, outlined the
major concerns of the Society,
charging that College ad-
ministrators are using student fees
to cover gaps in the budget.

"I think it’s really sad that we
raise tuition 11 per cent and spend
$40,000 to buy new board room
furniture," Gludavoatz said, spin-

ning on a boardroom chair.

Gludovatz said that financial
aid for students is far behind the
cost of education and living expen-
ses. He added that an 11 per cent
tuition fee increase will place a
severe hardship on students.

"Students don’t live in the best
accommodations," said Gludovatz.
"It’s not easy surviving with no
wages and a low amount of
money which many students have
to pay back. Financial aid will only
increase by five per cent this year."

Adrienne Peacock, repre-
senting the Douglas College Facul-
ty Association, also expressed
concern about the impact of the
tuition fee increase on students.

"It was with sadness that we
saw the budget and increases to
tuition fees," said Peacock. "The
students seem to be singled out,
with a much higher increase than
the rate of inflation."

Board chair Myrna Popove
agreed that tuition fee increases
are very hard to deal with. "They
are not taken lightly by the board,”
she said. "The board is committed
to increasing student aid."

Speaking directly to Student

 

Say Wuat?!

“Anybody can act. Most of us do
nothing else.”

—Richard J. Needham, author

 

 

* Calendar fee:

time.

 

Tuition and Other Fee Increases

* Tuition fees from $27.00 to $30.00 per credit
* Application fee from $15.00 to $25.00

- pick up from $1.00 to $2.00
- mail out from $3.00 to $5.00
Overseas remains at $10.00
¢ Transcript fees have increased from $3.00 for the first copy and
$1.00 for each additional copy ordered at the same time, to $4,00 for
the first copy and $2.00 for each additional copy ordered at the same

Please note that the amended "Other Charges" are to commence on
August 13th. The tuition fee increase is to be effective for the Fall registra-
tion and is effective immediately for those students who are pre-paying.
This would also include the new assessments for Student Society and Other
Publications Society Membership Fees.

 

 

 

 

Society members, board member
Gordon Hoeflicker pointed out
that tuition fees are not the only in-
creases students will face in the
fall 1990.

“I’m aware that there’s an in-
crease in student fees from your
area too, from $6.00 to $8.00 which
is 33 per cent," said Hoeflicker.

But Jamie McEvoy, president
of the Student Society, said the tui-
tion fee increase imposed by the
Board is incremental ($3.00 per
credit), while the Society’s fee in-
crease is a total of $2.00.

Hoeflicker responded with a
more concrete example to justify
the increase in tuition fees, stating
that in comparison to other institu-
tions, Douglas College’s fees are
actually lower than average.

"Vancouver Vocational In-
stitute has been used as a com-
parison (by the Society) with only
a five per cent increase to tuition
this year," Hoeflicker said. "But
here are the real facts — even after
an 11 per cent increase our fees are
still lower than theirs."

According to a memorandum
from Bursar Peter Greenwood, out
of 10 community colleges and in-
stitutes in B.C., seven have higher
tuition fees than Douglas College.
One college has a comparable fee
structure and one has lower stu-
dent fees.

"We're working very hard to
keep services up and costs down,”
added College president Bill Day.
“We're a capital starved system,
there just aren’t enough dollars.
We have to reduce services or in-
crease revenues." @