MacEwan University is facing the possibility of layoffs and service cuts to fill a large hole in its budget, prompting fears of tuition hikes among students.
The school is looking at a $13 million hole in its budget over the next two years, caused by the province’s plans to cut its funding by 4.5 per cent.
The university’s president, David Atkinson, said they will be looking for new ways to increase revenues, as well as potentially making cuts to student services, such as bookstores, and administration.
But he said layoffs will be a necessary step to make up the lost funding, which he worries will have a large impact.
“It’ll mean staff reduction, I don’t think there’s any question about that,” he said. “Sixty-five per cent of our budget is comprised of salaries and benefits, so we don’t have a lot of flexibility to how it is that we can respond.”
“As soon as you start reducing staff, things are compromised.”
He added there are 80 vacant positions at MacEwan that will not be filled.
Atkinson said the university is dedicated to avoiding cuts to the academic areas. He said the province’s advanced education department has signaled that it will allow institutions to seek more money from their students.
“[The ministry] makes specific reference to the need to create a sustainable post-secondary system, which includes increased fees and … tuition,” he said.
But the idea of increased tuition doesn’t sit right with Cameron McCoy. As president of MacEwan’s student association, he said his fellow students are concerned about what the budget problems will mean for them.
“I think students, including myself, are just worried about what the next steps will be and whether that will result in tuition increases,” he said.
McCoy sympathises with the university’s need to find a way to deal with the reduced funding. But he said putting a greater burden on the students is not the right approach.
“We still think that, even though it may be difficult, it’s the right move to keep students’ tuition affordable,” he said.
