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Local students compete in the Improv Games. Iahada .com I Waterloo snow- boarder Lindsey Edwards is of to her first national championship. Viewpoint You said it Classified 30 Lifestyle Saab oi Kitchener Waterloo 663 Victoria St. N 744-5811 WAT ERLO -" RONICLE WHAT'S INSIDE N‘DR'I‘S Page 13 Page 25 l0 Undergraduate QPIIIIII lobbies provincial government [or increased tiitttmttlttlll aid s the price tag on quality Ai:,r!,i,-.':;ii.ti,iiter',,,s"; education ‘untinues In skyrocket. so does the number of students who face unmanageable education related debt (mn- they've complet- ed their classrooms studies. More and more, students across the province are discovering the hard way that working full time during the summer and part time during the school year is not enough to pay for a universityedu- cation. This realization has pushed a number nffulure students with the potential of earning a university Vanessa Lublin (left) and Kelly Gutpell, both students at Laurelwood public school, dissected a starfish during the annual Day With a Difference conference held Saturday at the University of Waterloo, The event, organized by the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario and the Waterloo Region district school board. encourages Grade 8 girls to consider careers in science, technology and mathematics. BY ANDREA Bun-1' ' Itromih, Ara/I WEDNESDAY, APRIL 4. 200t iiisthiyattyitu)tihity since 1856 Something's fishy education in not even apply for school, avoiding the overwhelm- ing debt they would face years later. To combat this mounting prob- lem. a group known as the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (UUSA) has launched the Real Students. Real Debt campaign to lobby the government of Ontario for better student aid. fair tuition fees, greater university account- ability and more funding for uni- versities. "Today students are either tak, ing on a high debt or not coming to university at all, which is just not acceptable" said Mark Schaan, O11SA president and vice-pred- dent of education for the WATERLOO, ONTARIO Federation of Students al the University orWaterloo. According to 0115A statistics, over the past decade the average student debt load upon graduation has increased by over SILSOO, from $8,675 In just under $20,500. Over the fast three decades. tuition fees have increased hy about 678 per fem. Until just five years ago. stu- dents relied heavily on the Ontario Student Assistance Program [USAF] lo cover most of the costs incurred during their years in school. However. the provincial govern- ment saw fit to decrease the " INCLUDING GST (bummed on page 2 OEIOI‘H (MNDAL WOYO ammo: 4% tax hike tedoo residents will see a Wj?i-,'iii/iff" increase on the city portion of their 2001 tax bills, the largest hit to the pocketbook in exactly a decade. However, city council did man- aged to shave 2.4 per cent off the forecasted increase of 6.4 per cent Monday night after the city's chief financial officer lohn Ford presented them with the figure two weeks ago. Overall. a ma-per-cent tax Hike will mean an increase of $21.74 for the average Waterloo housghold. 'Tm reasonably happy with the number," said Ooun. Marty Taylor, chair of the city's finance committee. "I had hoped it would sit between 2.9 and 3.9 per cent, so I guess this is at the high end of my prediction." The Budget approval stamps the largest increase residents have faced since a 4.67-per-cent hike in 1991. Taylor said mohmf the hike can be attributed to the upcoming addi- lion of four staff members in the city's fire service department. The cost of the increase in service sits at S273,MO for the year. which alone accounts for close to one per cent of the tax hike. As well, half a per cent can be chalked up to the Millennium Recreation Park. which is drawing $265,000, or 0.4 per cent, for its oper anions In line with the budget. the city will also spend $100,000 to increase itsgrowthyfparkland. ___ _ - _ "I think it's reasonable," Taylor said. 'Tm happy we're putting more money into park land to maintain our high level of parks througttout the city." "I'm also excited about the great float we're going to have for the Oktoberfest parade this year." he added. referring to council's decision to spend $10,000 on a new entry into the annual autumn celebration. Mayor Lynne Mkrolstencroft was also satisfied with the set rue hike, however, she would have liked to see a few more things added, rather than omitted from the budget. BY Ann-u mun Chronicle Staff (londnued on page 4