President

Every year Carleton students as a whole pay over $400,000 to the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS). That is more than $16 dollars per student to an organization that provides services that students already receive through CUSA. In fact, the services that CUSA offers, such as the health and dental plan, are actually more extensive than what the CFS provides. So, why pay additional money
for something we already have? We all know that students already pay too much for university. Luckily, we have a plan to put more money in your pocket by defederating from the CFS and saving Carleton students $400,000 a year!

Skyrocketing tuition fees are making it harder for students at Carleton. That’s why we have a plan to tackle out-of-control tuition fees. This plan includes lobbying Carleton University’s Board of Governors to vote against a raise in tuition, utilizing our connections in the Ottawa community to lobby local parliamentary officials to remove interest payments on OSAP, cap tuition fees for international students, and provide more funding for experiential learning. We know that paying for your education isn’t easy and we’ve got a plan to make sure that the university administration and our elected officials make these needed changes.

One of the biggest challenges students face is finding jobs in their field that give them the experience they need to find work after they graduate. We’re dedicated to helping students find employment by bringing more meaningful jobs to CUSA. How will we do this without using CUSA resources to pay students? We plan on taking advantage of government grant programs that are designed to offer student job opportunities. Just this year CUSA has already received $120,000 from the federal government to hire more students. But we won’t stop there. We will also create a job board on the CUSA website specifically dedicated to off-campus job postings. This is just ONE more way we are dedicated to ensuring that students have the opportunity to find a good job
while they’re at Carleton.

There’s a lot more that we can do to ensure that our campus is more environmentally-friendly. CUSA understands how important it is to work towards a greener and more sustainable campus. Environmental responsibility is top of mind. Which is why we will add more water bottle refill stations across campus. We will also introduce compost at Ollie’s and work to ensure that there are more recycling stations on campus. We know that the environment is our future and that CUSA has a responsibility to do its part.

Mental health is one of the biggest challenges facing students today. CUSA has been working on a number of initiatives, such as Pop the Stigma, to open the dialogue on this issue. But there’s more we can do to help support students. Therefore, CUSA believes that mental health treatment and services should be seen as no different than physical health. This is why we have committed to expanding the mental health support services provided by CUSA through our Health and Dental Plan. By taking advantage of the new OHIP+ coverage, we will be able to provide students with more services for what they already pay. We believe that it is our responsibility to modernize CUSA’s health plan and provide better support for those who need mental health services.

CUSA belongs to all of us students here at Carleton. That’s why every student should have the opportunity to voice their opinion on issues that matter. We’re committed to improving student engagement and creating a culture that works towards understanding the wants and needs of students. To do so, we promise to hold open consultations with students on a regular basis. Not only that, but we will also conduct online surveys, sending direct emails to students, and hosting more town halls to hear what’s on the mind of Carleton students. Everyone should have a chance to share their opinions and ideas with us, so we can do better.