Sisterhood of the Travelling Pantsuits!
If the Democrats in Denver can talk seriously about Education and early outreach, than so can our politicians. I hate to write about the convention, considering every blogger on the web is doing it, but what I have observed as someone within the Canadian post-secondary education sector is that we need a solid plan.
I know our governments and spending powers are different, but in this global economy we need a nation-wide plan to ensure education is available to our generation, and the ones to come.
If Canadians and the government are worried about our economy, we need to understand that a pan-Canadian accord for education will make our beautiful country competitive with the rest of the world. We need to face the facts here, every modern country competing in the global arena has a plan for education, or at least they are working on one. Yes, the federal government has announced a Science and Technology Plan, yes they have committed to supporting low-income students, and yes they understand that a stronger federal presence is necessary.
But what I’m worried about is that underrepresented child who can’t even think about pursuing education because she has to take two jobs to help with the family’s rent. I’m worried about that mother looking to go back to grad school so she can provide a better life for her family. I’m worried about teens dropping out of high school to work in an industry that may not be around in a couple of years.
The reality of the situation is this; the vast majority of students within higher education come from middle to upper class backgrounds. Their parents have attended higher education, and who can afford, or barely afford, to take out four years of their life to talk about peace and justice, to study ancient civilizations, and to examine micro organisms.
Now if we are serious about allowing each Canadian to achieve their dreams we need to support the Access Agenda. We need to ensure that young children are not scared to pursue higher education due to debt aversion and unrealistic costs of education. We need to ensure that those who do not have credit cards or savings can begin the process off applying to university, college or apprenticeship programs. And we need to ensure that those students within higher education are able to complete their studies without worrying about how they will pay for September tuition, rent, academic materials and food.
This is possible. We can do this through up-front, targeted grants for underrepresented students. We can do this through affordable tuition and a sound, modern student financial aid system. We can do this by allowing international students to collaborate in our world-class facilities. We can do this by supporting research and reducing barriers for those pursuing higher education.
As Senator Clinton said tonight, “A world-class education system to make college affordable for everyone” will make America stronger and competitive. Canadians need to think about our future and where we stand in the world. Many of our federal and provincial leaders are in Denver right now, if anyone watched the Tony Clement interview on CBC today, you know what I mean. Well I hope their ears are perked up to the way of the future: Prosperity, Hope, and Change through accessible, accountable, affordable and high quality education.
Canadians, it’s time we understood how important a pan-Canadian accord on education will be for the future of our country. Let’s learn something from our neighbours and understand that education is just as important as energy, the economy and the environment. Let’s make the looming federal election about education and secure the sustainability and prosperity of our future.
