MUNSU is demanding a meeting with Premier Andrew Furey to discuss the impact of tuition hikes, rising living costs, and food insecurity on Memorial students. In a video posted on September 6th, Executive Director of External Affairs Nicolas Keough said the student union would like to address these issues with the premier before the Student Day of Action on October 2nd.
According to Keough, Furey has not met with the student union in over 500 days.
“If the official student government of the largest post-secondary institution in the province wants to meet to discuss an issue impacting thousands of students, he should be able to meet with them,” said Keough.
“The dismissal we’ve seen from the Furey government over this incredibly serious issue is highly alarming and we look forward to setting up a time to meet with the Premier in the coming weeks.”
The Muse reached out to Premier Furey for comment on MUNSU’s request for a meeting to discuss the re-evaluation of the tuition freeze.
The Premier did not commit to a future meeting with MUNSU.
“Tuition decisions lie with the university,” says premiers office
This comes amidst previous commitments by the Premier to re-evaluate MUN funding after his government brought the end of the 22-year tuition freeze. In 2021, the province announced it was phasing out $68.4 million from the yearly tuition offset grant over the course of five years. Since this move, tuition at Memorial has more than doubled for domestic students, and has doubled for international students.
In an email to the Muse, the premiers office said that “though tuition decisions lie with the university, the government will continue collaborating with Memorial’s leadership to ensure it remains highly accessible.”
In July of 2023 the provincial government announced up to $10 million in funding to the university to remove the Campus Renewal Fee for students.
In an email to the Muse, the premiers office said that “after meeting with the students’ union, the government covered the student campus renewal fee, saving each full-time undergraduate $500 and various amounts for graduate and part-time students, representing a $6.5 million investment.”
Opposition parties weigh in
NLNDP leader Jim Dinn says that the Premier should meet with the student union.
“These young people are our future. If they’re burdened with debt, they’re not going to stick around in this province. If they’re unable to pay that debt back, they’ll go elsewhere. Premier, it’s time to meet with MUNSU to have meaningful discussions about this.”
The PC Party NL have previously spoke on the issue. It says that “Under the Furey Liberals, tuition at Memorial and CNA has skyrocketed. Students shouldn’t have to choose between paying fees or buying textbooks. Tony Wakeham and the PCs are committed to making post-secondary education affordable.”