2 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2011 EDITOR JESSE WINTER ews & features LSU finances open In light of Kwantlen investigation, LSU claims transarency By MORNA CASSIDY has its way, the provincial govern- ment will have the power to inter- vene in the financial affairs of student associations. The Kwantlen Student Association is being investigated for the misuse of funds totaling almost $1 million. The university has asked the province to change legislation governing how these associations are run. Currently, student associations oper- ate as independent businesses, ex- plained Langara spokesman, lan Hum- phreys. “The Langara student union is an in- dependent entity. It’s a society in and of itself. While we occasionally work with the student union, we have no control over the student union whatsoever.” Humphreys would not speculate about whether a misuse like Kwantlen’s might arise at Langara, but LSU media liaison Eli Zbar said it wasn’t likely be- cause the LSU’s finances are “almost painstakingly transparent.” “Every year we release the budget and auditors report, where literally ev- ery single penny of our expenditures are laid out for public display,” he add- ed. Students can review the LSU budget at any time in the LSU offices. The LSU has a three level approval process for any expenditure over $1000.00, and a two-level process for anything under that amount, said Zbar. “T question how things got so bad at Kwantlen. A million dollars is a lot of money...if provincial oversight is some- thing that would prevent that, I support it,” Zbar said. Langara students seem uninformed about their own student union spend- ing; “I don’t know anything about what they do,” said Hanna Little, arts and science transfer student. “Td like to know more details so we can get involved and so we can benefit from the money that we give,” said Ari- anne Laboissonniere another arts and science student. I: Kwantlen Polytechnic University LSU board members Eli Zbar and Angela Liu have been working to set up the new art exhibition space in the SUB. space for Langara artists New frames in the SUB will add a creative atmosphere By JEN ST. DENIS alling all artists: Langara stu- dents may now display and sell their artwork in the Student Union Building. At a cost of around $6,000, the Langa- ra Students’ Union has installed pic- ture rails, frames and display cases on walls throughout the first floor of the Student Union Building. Right now the frames display repro- ductions of famous paintings, but will soon house homegrown art with a wide variety of sizes and formats. “We wanted everyone in the school to have access to as much culture and art as they can,” said Eli Zbar, the LSU board member behind the project. Students who want to display their art in the space will have to sign a con- tract stating they are current Langara students. They will also not be allowed to display art the LSU deems offensive, a move that Zbar said is only intended to ensure that the displays are tasteful and appropriate for a school setting. The exhibition space has come too late for last year’s design formation students. Their request to exhibit their work in the Student Union Building was denied in March 2011. “The good news is after all the has- sles that my second-year students went through, it sounds like a positive ‘some- thing’ is coming out of it,” said Sherry Hancock, department chair of the de- sign formation program. Zbar said that the new exhibition space came out of a student survey the LSU did in February, 2011, and was not a response to the denied request. Zbar also plans to talk to the various arts programs at Langara to get their input for the exhibition space. “We haven’t done any specific reach- ing out to them,” said Zbar. “That’s the immediate next step.” Students can contact Eli Zbar, LSU media liaison, to ask about displaying their art (ezbar@I]su.be.ca). Jen St.Denis photo New gallery hopes to provide NEW Frames SIZES - smallest: 12x12 inches -largest: 50x30 incehs LOCATIONS -12 frames in total - three high-traffic areas for two-dimensional art -three display cases for 3D art like pottery, sculptures, etc Source: Eli Zbar, LSU Media Liaison Tight student finances spur parental aid , Financial Aid Meeting Room B116 Aboriginal Services Carly Wignes photo Students needing cash line up for funding outside Financial Aid A recent BMO survey shows that over half of parents think they should pay for their kid’s classes By CARLY WIGNES hefty tab at the accounting office is just the motivation they need to work hard. But what of their peers whose parents pay for tuition? Many parents do pay and often nego- tiate specific terms with their children before agreeing to pay their fees, ac- cording to a recent BMO survey. Fifty- four per cent said they think they should pay up to half of their child’s post-secondary education, and 43 per cent of students agree with them. But for some Langara students, get- ting a free ride means they lack motiva- tion. The parents of Sam Yee, a second- year arts and sciences student, pay for F:: some students at Langara, a their daughter’s tuition using educa- tion savings plans they have invested in for years. However, the financial break is not necessarily educationally benefiting Yee. ‘Tm only in school because it’s being paid for,” she admitted. Yee’s friend Richelle Day also gets school paid for by her parents, and she is similar- ly unmotivated. “I feel like ’m SAMYEE wasting my time Free school not here,” she said. motivating And don’t for- get; the bank of mom and dad is still a bank, and many banks have strings at- tached. First-year student Andy Zhao, for instance, gets school paid for by his parents on the condition that he stud- ies business and pays them back once he graduates. Many other Langara students are buried in debt and working full-time hours while they attend school. For them, determination to graduate comes easy. Second-year arts and sciences stu- dent Maggie Kirkpatrick uses student loans, with over 17 per cent other stu- dents at the college, to pay for tuition. She has never expected her parents to chip in. Paying for school herself has helped Kirkpatrick appreciate the val- ue of her education. “Not that ’'m stoked about being in debt for the rest of my life,” she added. For Nikita Raman, a first-year fine arts student, paying for school means working full-time on the weekends. She has already reached the limit on her student line of credit and will have to apply for loans next term. Like Kirkpatrick, Raman also lives in her own place and pays for rent, text- books, a cellphone, and groceries. “Luckily, my car just broke down,” joked Raman. “Since I moved out, my dad says I can be independent and pay for everything myself,” she added. 66 Since I moved out, my dad says Ican be indepen- dent and pay for everything myself Nikita Raman