OUSA

TORONTO, May 16 – The Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) is releasing a submission to the Ontario government and universities addressing the pressing health care needs of students pursuing higher education in Ontario. Student Health: Bringing Healthy Change to Ontario Universities outlines student mental and physical wellbeing as essential to students’ capacity to reach their full learning potential.

“Student health care is an essential service,” said Sean Madden, President of OUSA, “not just for those students utilizing the services, but also for the broader community. Ensuring the service is meeting the physical and mental health needs of students must be a top priority.”

Evidence from OUSA’s latest student survey found that 70 per cent of Ontario undergraduate students accessed campus health services by their fourth year of studies. The recommendations in Student Health aim to ensure that health services on campuses meet the needs of students both in terms of accessibility and quality.

Addressed in this submission are a range of recommendations to the Ontario government around student health ancillary fees, physician compensation, the integration of care, front-line mental health care, anti-stigma initiatives, and services for marginalized students. Student health services represent the only primary care model that requires its patients to pay out-of-pocket for overhead and capital costs.

Also among the recommendations in Student Health is a significant focus on the mental health of university and college students. Recent estimates of the economic costs of mental health and addiction are pegged at $39 billion annually, with productivity losses accounting for 74 per cent of the costs.

“By being proactive with students’ mental health, we actually lessen the need for their healthcare later in life,” continued Madden. “For every dollar we put towards mental health now, we save $30 down the line in social costs and productivity losses.”

OUSA is looking forward to bringing Student Health to tomorrow’s Focus on Mental Health conference, sponsored by Colleges Ontario, the College Student Alliance, the Council of Ontario Universities and OUSA. The full report is available online.

Sean Madden

Hello all!

It is with mixed feelings that I write my last communiqué as President of OUSA. I’m proud of the year we’ve had on behalf of Ontario’s students, and am excited to soon be leaving the organization in new hands, but of course there is some sadness that my own time with this wonderful group is coming to an end.

As many of you may be aware this is a time of significant change in not only the student populated Board of OUSA but also in our Home Office staff, as Sam Andrey, Alvin Tedjo and Laura Pin (our Executive Director, Director of Communications and Research Analyst, respectively) move on to other opportunities. I wish them the best in their new endeavors and I want to thank all in the Home Office for their tireless dedication this year. Your incredibly high standards, passion and creativity are core to OUSA’s being recognized as a trusted partner and thought leader. Your work has inspired a generation of student leaders, and I welcome the new members of our staff into that proud tradition.

I want to thank my peers on the Steering Committee for this opportunity, and for your work on behalf of the Alliance this year. I have never met such a talented and inspiring group of people, and it has been an honor to work with you this year.

Thank you to our partners in the sector, the government and our respective universities. Together we have been able to create a space for important innovation and discussions that move us forward on behalf of all Ontario students. For many of us at OUSA, this year truly felt like standing on the shoulders of giants from the sector and OUSA past. This year’s government submissions and research were of the highest caliber yet and show well the results of increased dialogue within the sector, a focus on strong contributions to the post-secondary environment and relationships with all parties in the government.

In closing, I want to share my sincere appreciation to all the student leaders of OUSA. Your dedication to representing your students will continue to create positive and constructive change long after your time here. This year has set a new standard for the quality, passion and effort on behalf of our volunteers, and there is no stating the importance of your work to OUSA’s successes.

Thanks all for the chance of a lifetime,

-Sean

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE MAY 2012 COMMUNIQUÉ

TORONTO, March 27 /CNW/ – Ontario’s students are pleased to see that the provincial budget has preserved past commitments to post-secondary education, but are discouraged by cuts to student aid and the lack of progress on other important priorities. The 2012 Ontario Budget re-committed to funding new post-secondary spaces and the new Ontario tuition grant program, while cutting planned investments in post-secondary capital projects. The government is also eliminating public support for the Ontario Work Study Program, the Ontario Special Bursary, the Dr. Albert Rose Bursary, and several existing scholarships, while reducing institutional support for international recruitment and non-PhD students.

“The government’s commitment to continue funding enrolment growth and the tuition grant are critical to creating a more accessible and affordable post-secondary education system,” said Sean Madden, President of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA). “However, there remains more work to be done, particularly on improving the quality of the learning environment.”

OUSA had presented modest budget proposals to the government to reward teaching, advance online education, expand experiential learning, and strengthen student support services. Students are left disappointed that suggestions to improve quality and efficiency in our universities were not enacted in this Budget. The cancellation of planned infrastructure investments on campuses will also exacerbate current space challenges for a growing student body, and downloading costs onto international students is the wrong direction for the government’s internationalization strategy. Students are also frustrated that responsibility for funding work study and low-income student bursaries has been transferred to students themselves through the tuition set-aside.

“With this Budget, our universities will continue to operate with the least per-student funding and highest tuition fees of any province, while teaching quality and student success remain pressing issues,” continued Madden. “While post-secondary education has been spared from more harmful cuts, we feel like this was a missed opportunity to begin investing in these important issues.”

“The path to balance and prosperity must start by protecting and building on gains made in education. We will continue working with the government to take the necessary next steps toward a stronger post-secondary education system,” said Sam Andrey, Executive Director of OUSA.