U of M’s financial projections are in

University requests additional 8.9 per cent in funding for next year

Chelsea Moore, Staff

Recently, the University of Manitoba submitted its financial estimations for next year to the Council on Post-Secondary Education (COPSE), requesting an 8.9 per cent increase in provincial funding. However, it’s too early to say what will happen to tuition fees if this additional $18.2 million is not received.

“At this point, [we are] simply laying out the needs of the university to COPSE,” said Mr. John Danakas, director of Public Affairs at the U of M.

Once the projections have been reviewed by members of COPSE, they will meet with the U of M to further discuss the university’s financial needs with students and faculty members. In the next month or so, the Council will develop a budget submission for the provincial government based on an assessment of the U of M’s previous fiscal trends and the recommended additional funding.

According to Danakas, the 8.9 per cent increase is the bare minimum amount required for the university to stay competitive and maintain infrastructure. Any new programs or services would require even more financing.

“It’s really about maintenance and remaining competitive. At this point it can’t be pegged to particular new programs,” said Danakas.

However, Amanda Aziz, president of the U of M’s students’ union, said the amount projected may be somewhat overestimated.

“I have no doubt that a certain amount of it is fear-mongering and being used as a negotiating tactic,” said Aziz. “I think that there are ways that the university could be spending money more properly that haven’t been explored, and hopefully we can explore those avenues and options in the next couple of months before the provincial and university budgets come down.”

Aziz also expressed concern that if this request for additional funding is not fulfilled by the provincial government, students will have to make up for the costs.

“If the university does not get its 8.9 per cent grant that it’s asking for,” said Aziz, “there’s no doubt in our minds that ancillary fees will be introduced, and the university will do whatever it needs to do to get around the tuition fee freeze.”

The additional $18.2 million in funding that the university has estimated it needs for next year is equivalent to a 21.8 per cent increase in students’ tuition fees; $6.9 million of that figure is what the university attempted to charge in ancillary fees last year. However, due to student opposition, the government implemented a one-year grant to cover the fee hikes.

“We’ve been assured over and over again from the provincial government that they do not want to see a repeat of what happened last year,” said Aziz. “We were very fortunate this year . . . it could’ve been a lot worse. I think that at this point if we don’t take action, it will be a lot worse next year.”

It won’t be until next spring, when the provincial budget is released, that the university will know how much funding they will receive and what impact this will have on tuition fees.