Set for March
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Feds/OFS-call protest by Mike Brown Imprint staff Quiet lobbying techniques are being thrust aside. The Federation of Students want Waterloo students to hit the streets of Toronto during a “Provincial Week of Action.” The Week of Action is the idea of the Ontario Federation of Students (OFS). UW’s Fed liaison to OFS is Darren Meister; he explained that OFS has persisted with quiet lobbying techniques “but is frustrated by it,” The targeted date is the week of March 7-10. The Feds will host forums on campus for the first three days. On Thursday, March IO busloads of Waterloo students will be transported free of charge to and from Queen’s Park, Toronto. Look for a forum on campus protesting the $106 living allowance of the Ontario Student Assistance Plan as well as a forum on municipal exclusionary bylaws restricting the number of students allowed to live together. The Federation indicated their on-campus forum portion of the Provincial Week of Action may start as early as the week of February 29. Meistet expects at least four buses to carry UW students to T.O. “Anything less than that is a sad comment,” he said. The bus tab will cost the Feds at least a $1,000. The secondary purpose of the day, says Meister is the linking of Ontario’s university students together in Toronto. The University of Western Ontario strongly endorsed the march, something that Meisterl said surprised him because of Western’s traditional conservative nature. Since he was wearing a Ralph Lauren shirt at the time of this interview, Meister chuckled at the thought of a Polo shirt clad student doubling as a temporary student activist. The difficult task in getting Waterloo students out will be detided upon today by a special committee meeting to choose a strategy. Heavy society involvement is expected to be the mainstay of the Fed ploy of filling the buses up. Other ideas under consideration for on-campus support for the week is a room jamming contest and possibly a debate between a municipal official and student leaders, Meister’ says a debate would “make the people making the decisions face the students.” UW student council support for the action week was very strong. Organizers are hopeful that Waterloo’s show of seven people at a Queen’s Park protest dating back a few years can be topped. President -elect Adam Chamberlain warned that protests of this nature should not be done all the time, “but a little bit of media attention isn’t all bad,” he said. He added that a protest was overdue. I Anxious students can sign a preliminary sign-up sheet for a seat on the bus in the Federation of Students’ office in the Campus Centre.
OCUA stalling puts co-op fees up in air by lacquie Griffin Imprint staff Students in co-operative education proirams may be paying more in the upcoming term. At the university senate finance meeting, held this past Tuesday, the 1988-89 budget includes $700,000 in increased co-op fees. If this proposal is passed by the Ontario Council on University Affairs, students will be paying about $320 per term in co-op fees, Rationalizations for this include the following: cost to the department, space and utility costs, computing and data costs (to conduct its extensive matching process between employers and students], marking work reports and faculty administration related to co-op. It is these last two aspects in regards to the increase that greatly concerti the Federation of Students. In a number of faculties, marking of work reports is done not by the university, but by the employer. Included with faculty administration duties, the Federation sees the amount of $700,000 as questionably high. The Federation has brought its case against the increase to OCUA. The Federation is also concerned with a plan to introduce the changes into the budget before it has actually been approved. Essentially, if the increase is not passed by OCUA until the fall, students in the summer will still have to pay these already inflated fees. Fed President Ted Carlton said that “on such a tight budget, this approach is actually somewhat reckless. If the increase is not approved it could put the university budget in the red.”
Salary committee conciirns Carlton by Jacquie Griffin staff I Imprint A further review of the Uni. versity of Waterloo’s 1988-89 ; -budget was presented at the seI nate finance meeting Tuesday. Federation of Students Presir dent Ted Carlton voiced several ’ concerns, one of which &nlt with the Faculty salary committee. The committee basically deThe Federation of Students and the OFS hope to reincarnate the cides the salary increases to be above show of spirit of university students backing their student given faculty members in the upcoming year. leaders up on key issues. The OFS is sponsoring a Provincial Carlton cites a problem .with Week of Action March 7-10. UW students are being asked to the committee, which was join other universities i’n a protest and social at Queen’s Park. formed several years ago. He says there should be some questioning as to why there is a lack of debate on faculty salary issues. “This is really the only aspect of the budget that remains closed to the board of governors, which means there is little room for debate of the whole package.” He said the situation is much cent to be exact in ‘86). Toronto by lames Cash different in other areas, and gave with 51.3 per cent, Western with Imprint staff the example of teaching equip38.8 per cent nnci Wilfrid Laurier ment, the budget for which is with 37.7 per cp?f round out the Included with the University down 38 per cent from last year, rest of the top five in 1986. Brock of Waterloo budget information from $1.3 million to $800,000. came last with 31.8 per cent, released Tuesday were some in“Perhaps”, Carlton said, “there Waterloo leads the pack, howteresting statistics concerning should be questioning in regards ever, in the frequency of scholarthe university. Most impressive to factilty increases, as this may ships awarded to its graduate is the share of Ontario Scholars have affected this 38 per cent destudents, these include NSERC Waterloo attracts. crease.” postgraduate, NSERC 1967, OnIn 1986, 54 of every 100 registario Graduate Scholarships, trants were Ontario Scholars: in Doctoral Fellowships 1984, 52.7 of every 100 regis- , SSHRC Scholartrants were OS and in 1982,54.9 ’ and the Commonwealth ships. In 1086-87,23.2 per cent of out of every 100 registrants were the total graduate student enrolOS. Consistently, more than half ment, some 390 students, at Waof Waterloo’s Grade 13 registerloo were awarded. In a distant trants comprise Ontario Schosecond place is Toronto with lars, 16.1 per cent awarded scholarThis is only a second-place ships. Guelph with 15.9 per cent, standing. Queen’s came first in Queen’s with 11 per cent, and each sample year with OS Grade McMaster with 10.3 per cent 13 registrants numbering complete the top five. roughly seven in 10 (72.6 per
Waterloo second for attracthg brains
Basically all decisions made by the faculty salary committee are binding on the senate and the board of governors once the representatives have made a decision. Acting Vice-President (academic and provost] Robin Banks said the committee clearlv PCpresents the faculty and board of governors, as there is a representation from both sides. The sixmember salary committee are made up of members of the faculty association as well as reprtisentatives from th’e university association. Banks also pointed out that the BOG agreed to the implementation of a faculty salary committee. “The process is a unique one and is better than most universities . . . it is basically an agreement that is fairly negotiEited to come to a point that is acceptable.” Carlton cites further concerns with the chairman of the committee. If the representatives from faculty and university cannot come to a conclusion, the decision is ultimately made by the. chairman. “This is quite a responsibility to place in the hands of one person, without the further debate of board and senate.”