University of Guelph refuses to remit collected fees
On Wednesday, Nov. 15, the Central Student Association (CSA) hosted a town hall meeting at the Brass Taps Campus Pub. To begin the evening, each CSA executive member took a few minutes to highlight their individual projects for the year. Although unable to attend the meeting, the policy and transition officer left a report of her activities to be presented to students as well.
The main point of interest during this once-a-semester meeting was the ongoing lawsuit between the University of Guelph and the CSA, Canadian Federation of Students (CFS), and Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario (CFS-O).
The battle began as a feud between the CSA and the CFS regarding autonomy; however, the CSA and CFS/CFS-O were able to settle the original dispute in 2012, deciding that the CSA would remain part of CFS/CFS-O and the University would continue to collect student fees to be remitted to the Canada-wide student organization. Although the University continued to collect these fees until 2012, they refused to remit the fees collected during the time of the lawsuit and refused to collect any further fees after 2012.The settlement on the table at this time would obligate the University to remit to CFS/CFS-O, the fees they had collected during the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 academic years. It would also mean that CFS student fees will be collected again starting in summer 2018. The exact amount of these fees has not been determined, but according to the CSA vice president of student experience, Emily Vance, they should be somewhere between $8 and $10.
The CSA board of directors voted on this agenda item at the Nov. 22 board meeting. Board members were present at the meeting to gage student opinions on the settlement options.
During the town hall, questions were also posed regarding a potential increase in CSA student fees in the coming year. While no final decision has been announced as of yet, the CSA executive stated that this is a possibility.
Other priorities of the CSA this semester include a 24-hour study space and a possible fall reading break. If you have your own grievance or suggestion, they strongly urge you to come to their office in the University Centre and speak to their staff.
Photo by Alora Griffiths/The Ontarion