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«NEWS
THE MEDIUM 09.21.2015
U-Pass queues last hours Students wait 20 minutes to two hours for U-Pass
»HOW LONG DID YOU WAIT IN LINE FOR YOUR U-PASS?
Tyler Pacheco 1st year, sciences
Emily Kim 1st year, life science
2 hours and 30 minutes. It was in the heat so it wasn’t great.
2 hours.
Ailana Sicat 3rd year, life science
Daniel Boyomo Yakana 2nd year, CCIT
20 minutes. My advice: get here early, or get it late in the day. I got it late.
1 hour and 30 minutes. It was long, hot, and tiring.
MAYDA ALKHALDI/THE MEDIUM
Over 11,000 students picked up their U-Pass. ALICIA BOATTO Students were faced with one- to twohour wait times when collecting their U-Pass this academic year. In an email from UTMSU on August 26, students were advised of forthcoming changes to the U-Pass pick up process to “ensure that [students] have a better experience”. Students reported wait times ranging from 20 minutes to two hours while picking up U-Passes, which were distributed from August 28 to September 11. New this year, students were required to enter information
electronically such as their emails, city of residence, and their phone numbers on a spreadsheet. In previous years, students wrote out their contact information when picking up their U-Pass. “We changed the way we record information from pen and paper tracking to digital tracking sheets in order to better meet our tracking requirements,” said Ebi Agbeyegbe, UTMSU president, who explained the information is used to track UPasses for both MiWay and UTMSU. “I had to wait two hours in line and I had to miss a class because I didn’t
want to wait in line the next day,” said Jaclyn Del Rosso, a third-year criminology and English student who told The Medium that her wait time was significantly longer than last year. Nicole Bernadowitsch, a thirdyear ancient history student, also saw a significant increase in the length of time it took for her to pick up her UPass. “Last year, I waited in line for about 20 minutes, but this year it was more like two hours,” she said. According to Agbeyegbe, over 11,000 students have picked up their U-Pass.
U of T faces decreasing provincial funding Campus Affairs Council last Monday, student fees contributed to 57.3 percent of operating revenue while provincial support contributed 30.3 percent of revenue. Of the revenue collected from student fees, domestic students contribute to 27 percent of the revenue, and international students contribute 21 percent. The remaining 12.5 percent of university revenue came from other unspecified sources. Of the university’s expenses, 59.7 percent has been allocated to academic divisions, while university wide costs add up to 31.8 percent of expenses, and student aid makes up 8.5 percent of operating expenses. According to information presented at the council, if university revenue were to increase at a steady level, it would still not be able to
keep up with the increasing expenses. While province-wide university enrolment has decreased, U of T’s student body is expected to continue to grow. Reported at 10,942 undergraduate students in 2014, UTM’s long-term enrolment forecast expects to reach 13,044 by 2019. According to Amy Mullin, UTM’s VP academic and dean, UTM’s ideal student to faculty ratio is 30:1, while the current ratio is 35.9:1. Mullin also reported to the council that 35 searches for new faculty members were conducted in 2014/15. According to Mullin and Paul Donoghue, UTM’s chief administrative officer, increasing enrolment growth at UTM means expenses are focused on building new spaces and hiring new faculty and staff.
The provincial grant now represents 30 percent of U of T revenue.
Ron Lenyk, Living Arts Centre CEO, dead at age 68
Liberals leading Toronto polls as election nears
Mississauga mayor aimsto raise $5 million for Syrian refugees
Elizabeth May participates in Globe and Mail debate via Twitter
Newfoundland student to file human rights complaint against prof
Ron Lenyk, Living Arts Centre CEO and past publisher of The Mississauga News, died on September 14 at the age of 68. Lenyk was well known within the community and was declared Mississauga’s sixth most influencial person in 2013. The cause of death was attributed to heart failure.
A new poll released on Saturday has placed the Liberals leading votes in Toronto and the GTA ahead of the October 19 election. Of the 1,183 respondents in the forum research poll, 41 percent said they plan to vote for Trudeau’s Liberals on election day.
Mississauga mayor Bonnie Crombie is leading funding efforts to raise $5 million for Syrian refugees. Annouced on September 16, the fundraising efforts are led in part by LifeLine Syria and will help at least 32 families leaving Syria to settle in the GTA.
Elizabeth May used Twitter to participate in the federal leaders debate on Wednesday evening hosted by The Globe and Mail. The debate featuring the Liberal, NDP, and Conservative leaders did not invite May to attend the debate. May used Twitter to post video responses to questions posed to candidates during the debate.
A professor at Memorial University who refused to wear an assistive listening device for a student with hearing impairments will soon be the subject of a human rights complaint filed by her student. The professor cited religious reasons for her refusal to wear the equipment.
Source: Mississauga News
Source: Toronto Star
Source: Toronto Star
Source: CBC News
Source: CTV News
ANDREEA MIHAI U of T is currently experiencing a changing financial landscape as the Province of Ontario is granting less financial support to the university. According to Cheryl Regehr, U of T’s VP and provost, Ontario’s per student operating grant funding is the lowest in the country and U of T is transitioning from a publicly funded to a publicly supported institution. According to Trevor Rodgers, senior manager of U of T’s budget administration and planning department, the provincial operating grant used to represent the largest source of revenue 10 years ago. The grant now represents only 30 percent of operating revenue. According to the university’s 2015/16 budget presented at UTM’s
MAHMOUD SAROUJI/THE MEDIUM