By William Crooks
Local Journalism Initiative
Members of the provincial Official Opposition (PLQ) and student representatives decried the planned tuition hike for university students at a press conference held at Bishop’s University (BU) Oct. 27. The hike will nearly double the fees out-of-province students will pay per year at Quebec universities, from around $9,000 to $17,000, starting in the fall of 2024. Over 40 media, students, staff and politicians attended, notably including Sébastien Lebel-Grenier, BU’s Principal and Vice-Chancellor.
Marc Tanguay, PLQ member and Leader of the Official Opposition, emphasized he was there to demonstrate his support for BU in their cause against the hike. The hike will have a negative effect on all Quebec universities, especially BU, he insisted. Doubling fees for out-of-province students will have a “devastating impact” on BU’s identity and finances. “The cause is just and justified.”
Catherine Bibeau-Lorraine, President of the Quebec Student Union, said the provincial government is raising tuition “for no good reason and no good pretext”, and demanded the hike be canceled.
BU Student Representative Council President Sophia Stacey disputed what she sees as the government’s view that out-of-province students contribute less to the “post-secondary landscape” than Quebec students. The government’s actions “[undermine] the autonomy of young people to determine their educational path”. What is ultimately at stake is students’ sense of belonging to Quebec, she insisted.
Stacey was raised in Alberta, but has grown to love her “French heritage”. She participated in an exchange program to St. Hyacinthe in her youth, which is why she came back to Quebec to study at BU. Her personal story and that of thousands of others outweigh the government’s reasoning for raising tuition, which is not “research-based”. “Education is a right to all,” she said.
Marwah Rizqy, spokesperson for the Official Opposition on matters of education and higher education, said every university has a major role to play in our society. Even if some BU students eventually leave Quebec, they become ambassadors for the province to the rest of English Canada.
“We need to attract… and keep English students,” she insisted. Universities are looking for the most talented people they can get, wherever they can find them. Many French students also believe that any student can find a place here, she noted. She listed off a group of French political and business leaders; it is not just ‘angryphones’ that disagree with the government’s decision.
The government has made no study of what kind of impact this legislation will have, she continued. Come and meet with the staff and the students of these universities, she suggested, addressing Pascale Déry, Minister of Higher Education, to get an idea of the grave consequences, financial and otherwise, of your actions.