The RSU is disappointed with the money allocated for post-secondary education in the federal government’s 2010-11 budget, says its vice-president of education. But the university is satisfied.

“There’s no new money for post-secondary education and there’s been no increase for funding to Canada student grants program or Canada students loan program,” Liana Salvador said.

On March 5 the federal government announced about $1.9 billion in invesment to post-secondary education, research, technology innovation, infrastructure, and environmental protection.It will also give $1 billion towards deferred maintenance and repairs and constructions at universities and colleges. Plus, tax exemptions will continue for scholarships, bursaries and fellowships by giving students education tax credits.

Salvador says that the students’ union lobbied the government to increase overall accessibility and accountability.

“We need more money to go upfront to needs-based grants and more money to shift from back-end tax credits to upfront grants,” she said.

Meanwhile, president Sheldon Levy said the university sector did well despite the past recession.

“Given all the constraints that the government was under, and the priorities that they were able to establish, the university sector has done fairly well. Not as well as one would have wanted, but we did reasonably well,” said Levy, who is also chair of the Council of Ontario Universities (COU).

This announcement will not affect the three or four per cent cuts to the school’s operating budget next year.

“The trickle down from the federal government is not in the university’s operating budget, but in the operating budget of the researchers,” Levy said. “It’s the provincial budget that’s the critical one.”
The only way Ryerson’s operating budget is affected is if the school’s faculty members win grants and bring in additional money.