Students Nova Scotia Launches Provincial Student Advocacy Week
Halifax, NS - Today, student leaders from across the province arrived in Halifax to kick off Students Nova Scotia’s annual Advocacy Week. The week began with the release of the report “Enhancing Access & Quality: Centring Education on the Path to a Stronger Nova Scotia”, which presents research-based recommendations focused on enhancing the accessibility, affordability and quality of post-secondary education in Nova Scotia. Over the next 5 days, students will be meeting with MLAs and stakeholders across the postsecondary sector to discuss the report and to encourage decision makers to take action on key student priorities.
“Students Nova Scotia’s focus has always been the creation of realistic, student-focused recommendations to improve the postsecondary experience,” says Ben Fairhust, Chair of Students Nova Scotia. “Through the recommendations we’ve highlighted in our report, we are optimistic that students and graduates will continue to drive our province forward in terms of economy, culture, and population growth.”
This year, student recommendations include enhancements to the student financial assistance program, expansion of student and graduate employment programs, enhanced healthcare supports and investments in affordable educational materials.
“We know that two of the largest factors influencing the decision of Nova Scotia youth to stay in the province are high quality educational options and strong employment prospects,” says Matthew Stanbrook, Vice-Chair of Students Nova Scotia. “As Nova Scotia continues to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, investments in students and graduates are investments in the future of our province.”
Student Advocacy Week is a central component of StudentsNS’ ongoing work to ensure student priorities and student perspectives are heard by government and decision-makers across the province. We believe that meeting with Government and stakeholders is the most effective way to address student issues and collaboratively improve Nova Scotia’s higher education sector.
Access the full report on our website at www.studentsns.ca/government-submissions.
For more information, contact:
Lydia Houck, Executive Director
902-476-2367
Students Nova Scotia is a not-for-profit and non-partisan advocacy group that represents Nova Scotia post-secondary students. Our members study at Acadia, Saint Mary’s, and St. Francis Xavier Universities, as well as the Kingstec and Annapolis Valley Campuses of the Nova Scotia Community College.