Dear Colleagues:
Please find below and attached OCUFA’s media release regarding the 2013 Ontario Budget, tabled this afternoon. We will also be sending you an analysis of various Ontario Budget provisions in the near future.
Best regards,
Mark
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2013.05.02 – OCUFA Release – Ontario Budget 2013
Professors and academic librarians to Premier: It’s time to invest in universities
TORONTO – Ontario’s 17,000 professors and academic librarians are calling on Premier Wynne to
invest in the province’s universities after today’s budget missed an opportunity to introduce new
funding for higher education institutions. The 2013 Budget continues to impose small cuts on the
university sector, leading to an overall decline in per-student funding.
“Ontario already has the worst level of per-student funding in Canada, and this budget continues this
trend,” says Constance Adamson, President of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty
Associations (OCUFA). “We’re pleased to see that youth and youth employment are priorities for
Premier Wynne. Investing in universities is a natural way to ensure that young Ontarians will find
success in the job market and in their communities.”
Increasing the level of per-student funding in Ontario would bring many benefits to young people in
the province. There would be more professors, improving student engagement and mentorship.
Aging labs, libraries, and classrooms would be upgraded, contributing to an enhanced learning
environment. Students would have greater access to the latest technology. Increased per-student
funding would also help control rising tuition fees, keeping university affordable for Ontario
families.
“We’re worried that the narrow focus on reducing the provincial deficit is crowding out other
priorities equally important to Ontarians. Investment in universities helps reduce the deficit by
stimulating economic growth and building a strong society,” said Adamson.
Austerity policies that seek to reduce the deficit through cuts to valuable public services like
education are now widely seen as harmful to economic growth. The International Monetary Fund is
now cautioning governments against aggressive deficit reduction.
“Austerity is based on sketchy research, and has failed to generate economic growth around the
world,” said Adamson. “We should be investing in the things that we know lead to economic growth
and social vitality, like our universities.”
Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 professors and academic librarians in 27 faculty
associations across Ontario. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at
http://www.ocufa.on.ca.
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Media Contact:
Graeme Stewart at 416 306 6033 (office), 647 280 3175 (mobile), or [email protected]
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Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]