Volume 30, No. 2        	Editor: Bob Rupert	      December 15,  1999.



	STUDENTS' FEDERATION SEEKS HELP FOR ACCESS 2000 POLITICAL ACTION ON 

				FEB. 2, 2000



The Canadian Federation of Students has launched a campaign to pressure both

federal and provincial governments to restore reasonable funding to the

country's devastated universities and colleges.



The students' group also wants a greater access to colleges and universities

in the new millennium, arguing that everyone willing to learn should have

the opportunity to do so.



The Canadian Association of University Teachers and the Ontario

Confederation of University Faculty Associations have both pledged support

for the students' Access 2000 campaign.  And in its last meeting, CUASA

council unanimously passed a motion of support.



Post-secondary underfunding is a national problem, but the crisis is

particularly acute in Ontario.  The province that once led the nation in

post-secondary education now ranks dead last in funding per capita.



Only two U.S. states have even worse records.



While the Harris government proudly boasts that Ontario's booming economy is

the engine driving Canada's economy, the same government is shameless in its

starvation of universities and colleges.  Already reeling from cutbacks, the

system must now prepare for the fast-approaching double cohort.



For students, the province's parsimony has meant increased tuition,

deregulated fees, higher levels of indebtedness and, tragically, for many

potential students, the decision that university study is out of reach.



For us, the Harris government's tight-fistedness means that we continue to

fall behind other nations in salaries, support for research, infrastructure,

and libraries.  It has also meant overcrowded classes and labs and failing

equipment.



It is a mess, and our students want our help on February 2, 2000 as they

strike and demonstrate in protest.  The Carleton University Students'

Association is asking all faculty to avoid scheduling exams or due dates for

February 2, 2000.  On that date the students will strike and will be

attending a mass demonstration.



CUASA believes the students are right.  The Harris government relentlessly

demonstrates its contempt for Ontario's post-secondary education community.

The least we can do is support the students in their effort to tell the

province how they feel, because we feel the same way.



We at CUASA invite your comments.  Please take a minute to either write or

e-mail these to the CUASA office.



And if you want to tell your students you're behind them - that's fine too.