SU proposes student-centric policies for Budget 2025, advanced education minister responds
By Nazeefa Ahmed, January 9 2025—
The University of Calgary’s Students’ Union (SU), in partnership with the Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) and the Students’ Association of Mount Royal University (SAMRU), shared the “2025 Pre-Budget document” with the UCP government as part of their student advocacy efforts. The document, submitted in September 2024, provides six policy recommendations for the government to consider during provincial budget deliberations.
The SU’s pre-budget submission is the first submission of its kind, aiming to consolidate asks of Calgarian students, according to an SU media spokesperson in an interview with the Gauntlet.
SU President Ermia Rezaei-Afsah and Vice-President External Mateusz Salmassi spoke to various ministers and government staff in November 2024 about key student issues outlined in the document.
Advanced Education Minister responds to the recommendations
In a statement to the Gauntlet, Advanced Education Minister Rajan Sawhney shared some ways Budget 2024 prioritized student needs, from investing over $1 billion in post-secondary education access.
“We also instituted a two per cent cap on domestic tuition increases, reduced the interest rate on Alberta student loans, extended the payment and interest free grace period for loans, increased eligibility for the Repayment Assistance Plan, and modernized student aid shelter allowances,” said Sawhney in a statement to the Gauntlet.
She also shares her consultation with various stakeholders, including students and student unions in Alberta.
“While Budget 2025 discussions continue, I am committed to meeting the needs of Alberta students while navigating the current economic climate, particularly in light of the incoming U.S. administration’s proposed tariffs,” the statement continues.
Increase the Campus Alberta Grant by 10 per cent
The Campus Alberta Grant provides public institutions with funding to support operating costs such as faculty salaries and learning equipment, aiming to, “[reduce] the impact these costs can have on a student’s tuition” according to the Government of Alberta website.
However, the province has been decreasing the Campus Alberta Grant since 2019, $300 million between Budget 2019 and Budget 2024, according to the submission. Tuition fees have subsequently risen, as a three-unit course that was $538.59 in 2019 is now $709.98, marking a 32 per cent increase.
In response to high inflation rates and increasing costs of living, the UCP government instituted a 2 per cent cap on domestic tuition increases in 2023.
However, the reliance on students over public funds remains a concern in the submission, as University of Calgary’s revenue from Campus Alberta Grant for the 2024-25 budget was $388.9 million compared to the $410.8 million collected through tuition.
“What’s clear to students is that they’re being increasingly asked to pay for their institution’s overheads, with little added value in return,” reads the document.
Support for student housing
Currently, the province does not fund student-specific housing, but the unions proposed a $250 million provincial student housing fund, which would be five per cent of Alberta’s expected $5.5 billion surplus for 2024, according to the document.
This recommendation was based on U of C’s poor housing ratio – one student housed out of 12 – in addition to students paying 25 per cent higher rent than other renting demographics, according to a 2022 Utile report.
The submission also states how the Provincial Priorities Act, creates a barrier to access low-interest loans from the federal government and asks for the U of C and MRU to be exempt from this “red tape”.
Lastly, the document makes a comparison between the 2 per cent tuition cap on domestic tuition with implementing Quebec’s “acceptable rental adjustments” model in Alberta, noting the “predictability and stability” the change would provide students.
Reinstating the STEP program
The Student Temporary Employment Program (STEP), first implemented in 1972, provided a wage subsidy to employers hiring students for a summer term. The program, which used to create 3000 student jobs, was canceled between 2013 and 2016 and then again by the current UCP government in 2019. The SU has been highly critical of this decision over the years.
Appendix A of the document analyzes Alberta’s Youth Unemployment Rate, comparing years when STEP was active to years when it was canceled, and finds that the unemployment rate was lower than Canada’s during the active years.
The unions also criticize the 2022 Work-integrated Learning Industry Voucher (WLIV) pilot work placement program, as a “poor spiritual successor” to STEP and “fiscally wasteful” as the WLIV supported 650 students over three years, according to the submission.
Increasing non-repayable student aid
Given that 17 per cent of the 2022-23 provincial student aid was distributed as grants, the unions ask for a 10 per cent increase in base funding for non-repayable student aid. The submission notes that most undergraduate students don’t qualify for grants and resort to Alberta student loans that, unlike loans from British Columbia and Manitoba’s student aid, accrue interest.
“The repressive effects of student debt become clearer when we consider that graduates of all program types since 2015 have faced a decline in economic outcomes,” reads the submission, citing how Alberta’s plan to increase enrollment provides less non-repayable financial aidper student.
The government does provide grants for undergraduate students based on full-time student status and family income. The province’s Alberta 2030 strategy also aims to improve affordability by “prioritizing [ing] future student aid funding to grants and bursaries.”
Permanent mental health funding
The unions ask for a “permanent commitment” to post-secondary mental health support as the Post-Secondary Student Mental Health Grant (PSMHG) is due for renewal for Budget 2025. The University of Calgary received $962,500 in mental health funding in 2023-24, which is less than the one million provided in 2019.
“The decrease would be understandable if enrolment had seen a significant decrease since 2019, but student numbers have only grown,” the submission reads.
However, Sawhney asserts that the government’s commitment to student mental health remains strong despite the changes in funding distribution.
“Budget 2024 invested $8.7 million to foster healthy campuses and support student mental health, both at publicly funded post-secondary institutions as well as First Nations colleges,” said Sawhney in a statement to the Gauntlet.
The final recommendation asks for graduate student research funding through research grants and scholarships, citing the federal Tri-Council Scholarships as a model to emulate.
The 2025 budget is set to be published in February 2025. Albertans are encouraged to provide their input until Jan. 12 through an online survey or written submissions.
The full Pre-Budget submission is available on the SU website.