VARSITY EDITORIAL PG 11
STUDENTS SUFFER FROM HOUSING SHORTAGE
VOL. CXXXIV, NO. 13
6 JANUARY, 2014
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1880
Sweeping changes to flat fees announced
NEWS
INSIDE
Minimum wage controversy Gildan Activewear, a clothing supplier to the University of Toronto, has promised to pay at least 90 per cent of its workers in Haiti the minimum wage. This commitment comes following a report produced by the Workers’ Rights Consortium.
PG 3 ARTS
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S! ES IE IM S IVE IT S T INE AT S ING T , H N U PL G N IN N O HE A TUO SCI NE TIO ECL LME T M UL DI NG EP D L 2 U M R CI RC ND RO G 1 TU FO FA PE A EN P
Biryani in Toronto The craft of cooking biryani, like painting, requires a light touch, sensitivity to the elements, and an eye for layering detail. Biryani chefs aggressively guard their recipes, giving every outlet serving biryani in Toronto its own unique, in-house taste.
PG 14 SCIENCE
Celebrating crystallography
University uncertain how income will be maintained, claims changes will cost millions James Flynn
VARSITY STAFF
Sweeping changes designed to save students thousands of dollars were announced by Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities Brad Duguid in early December. After four years of student union lobbying, protests, and controversy, the provincial government has introduced regulations to phase out U of T’s policy of charging full tuition to students who take as few as three courses — generally known as flat fees. The new guidelines, introduced on December 5, also eliminate interest fees incurred because of the Ontario Student Assistance Pro-
gram (osap)’s distribution schedule, mandate two payment periods for tuition, and regulate the types of late and ancillary fees that can be charged. Starting in fall 2015, students who take 3.5 full course equivalents (fces) or more will be charged full tuition. In 2016, that threshold will rise to 4.0 fces. Currently, U of T has a flat fee threshold at 3.0 fces. In addition, students with a disability will now be charged tuition on a per-credit basis, regardless of their course load. Individual domestic students who take three courses may save up to $2,300 per year under the new guidelines, according to Alastair Woods, chairperson of the Canadian
Federation of Students-Ontario. Individual international students who take three courses may save up to $13,000 per year. Although Woods sees the changes as a step in the right direction, he still advocates a return to per-credit billing. Agnes So, vice-president, university affairs, of the University of Toronto Students’ Union (utsu), echoed Woods’ sentiment. Although So is pleased with the government’s response to student concerns, she also advocates a return to per-credit billing. “We need to keep pushing until there is no longer a way that students can be forced to pay for courses they do not take,” So said.
CONTINUED ON PG 7
X-ray crystallography is the examination of patterns in diffracted Xrays to determine the crystalline atomic structure of solids. Despite the small number of people who have heard of it, its role in science and society as a whole is virtually unparalleled.
PG 18
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