VANCOUVER--The Canadian Federation of Students expressed support today for the BC government's announcement of new campus gathering spaces for Aboriginal students. The Federation also noted that due to tuition fee increases and underfunding at the federal level many Aboriginal students are unable to access post-secondary education and will never benefit from the gathering spaces.

"The new spaces are certainly welcome, as many colleges and universities do not have adequate cultural and support services for Aboriginal students," said Michael White, BC Aboriginal Students' Representative of the Canadian Federation of Students. "Unfortunately, with tuition fees having doubled and average student debt at $27,000 upon graduation, there won't be many Aboriginal students in the gathering places."

Since 2002, tuition fees have more than doubled in BC and average student debt has increased by 45%. Consequently, Aboriginal people remain dramatically under-represented in the post-secondary system. Furthermore, the federal government is responsible for providing post-secondary education to Aboriginal students; however, funding increases for the First Nations Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP) have been capped at 2% per year since the early 1990s, despite Aboriginal people being the fastest growing demographic in Canada.

The Canadian Federation of Students has called for a 10% reduction in tuition fees in the 2008 BC Budget and has been lobbying the federal government to increase funding to the PSSSP and remove the 2% cap on annual funding increases in order to increase access for Aboriginal students. The Assembly of First Nations estimates that more than 10,000 Aboriginal students were denied funding between 2001 and 2006 as a result of federal underfunding.

"It's disgraceful that so many Aboriginal youth are being left behind by government policies," said BC Chairperson of the Federation Shamus Reid, "The BC government must reduce tuition fees and stand up for BC at the federal level to demand that the federal government adequately fund Aboriginal students."