October 28, 2020

The Simon Fraser Student Society Annual General Meeting took place on October 26th, where over 600 students gathered virtually to condemn SFU for tuition increases implemented in the 2020-2021 academic year. The vote passed with an overwhelming 96% of students in favour, providing a clear mandate from the student body for the SFU Board of Governors and University Administration to immediately provide a response on a plan of action to withdraw the tuition fee increases for the 2020-2021 academic year, and to address the other impacts of the pandemic on undergraduate students.

SFU students have been calling for a tuition freeze for years, most notably when the university implemented tuition increases for the 2019-2020 year, which saw drastic increases to the tune of 2% for domestic students, and up to 20% for international students. This led to a well attended sit-in at the Board of Governors meeting organized by SFU Tuition Freeze Now, a grassroots organization of SFU students The Board of Governors members refused to make any amendments, nor any move to work with students to address the exploitative increases being faced by international students in particular.

“The SFSS has yet to receive any information on proposed changes to tuition fees for the 2021-2022 year, but we would like to make it clear before that budget is presented to us that we will not accept any increases, and will continue to demand a roll back on previously implemented tuition hikes.” said Osob Mohamed, SFSS President. “The undergraduate student body made it very clear that we cannot and will not continue to pay more and more in tuition each year. If the University continues to blatantly ignore the will of the students who make SFU the world-class institution it prides itself on being, we will rise up against it. ”

Read the full statement here.

See the full report from the SFSS Board of Directors including the motion passed here.

Follow @SFSS1 on Twitter and the Simon Fraser Student Society and the SFU COVID-19 Coalition on Facebook for updates on the campaign and upcoming actions.