ampus hews

EDITOR CHAHIRA MERARSI

THE VOICE, THURSDAY, OCT. 27,2016 3

Domestic

enrolment
target not
reached

Budget letter indicated
that provincial funding
could be cut if college
didn’t meet requirements

By TANNER BOKOR

gara failed to meet provincial full-

time domestic enrolment targets,
putting the college at risk of losing gov-
ernment funding.

Langara gets provincial funding for
7,056 domestic students, but because
202 full-time domestic seats were emp-
ty last year, the college is theoretically
at risk of losing $2.1 million going for-
ward.

“We're in a trough as far as the popu-
lation of college-aged students,” said
Ian Humphreys, Langara’s provost and
vice-president academic and students.
In 2015-16, Langara had 6,854 full-time
domestic students, 202 fewer than what
is funded by the B.C. government.

According to a B.C. Ministry of Ad-
vanced Education budget letter sent to
the college in August, failure to meet
provincial targets could mean funds
will be redirected to other institutions.

Humphreys said this rarely occurs in
B.C. as other institutions are often far
off of their FTE targets.

“If you look across the province, var-
ious institutions fail to meet their tar-
gets quite significant-
ly,” Humphreys said.
“T can’t think of an
=} |instance where the

\ government has ever
7’ ~~I\reduced funding as a
‘@majresult of institutions
, \ Inot meeting targets.”
IAN HUMPHREYS Domestic — enrol-
Provost and ment has been falling
Vice-President, by one to 1.5 per cent
Academicand annually in recent
Students years, he said.

r4 4 “We come within a

couple percentage
We’re in q_ points all the time of

meeting our targets,”
troug has he said. “I’m not over-

far as the \y concerned. Howev-
er..we are engaging

Dp opulation in a recruitment ini-

of college- tiative to try and

change the direction
ag ed stu- that the trend is mov-
dents

ing.”

Humphreys _ said
the college is focusing on international
enrolment to fill funding shortfalls.

“We charge a small premium over
the actual cost of delivery to our inter-
national students, and that does con-
tribute and offset some of the deficit
that we would incur on delivery to do-
mestic students,” said Humphreys. In-
ternational students are charged up to
six times more than domestic students.

By provincial law, the college cannot
increase domestic tuition above two
per cent per year, while the College
Board can set international tuition
rates as it sees fit.

The province gives $44 million a year
to the college’s $115 million budget. Tu-
ition, program fees, contracted servic-
es and investments make up the rest.

Andrew Wilkinson, B.C.’s Minister
of Advanced Education, said Langara’s
finances are historically stable.

“Langara actually does very well in
terms of financial performance, and de-
livers the product as it’s needed to,”
said Wilkinson. “It’s also in that special
situation where it doesn’t consume a
lot of supplies, like a welding program
or a heavy mechanic program would.”

F:: the first time in its history, Lan-

BUILDING INNOVATION
BATIR L'INNOVATION

_ BUILDING INNOVATION
naan BATIR L'INNOVATION

By CAITLIN O’FLANAGAN

inister of National Defence

and Vancouver South MP,

Harjit Sajjan, was at Langara

College Friday to announce a
government investment of $1.58 million
to update Langara’s Building A.

The funding’s main goal is to make
the building more environmentally
friendly and to provide better research
facilities for students and staff. One of
the biggest projects will replace two
ventilation systems, in operation since
the 1970s. The new fans will reduce
costs and energy usage. Sajjan empha-
sized the significance of these updates.

“Tt’s so important to be able to bring

that level of support to community col-
lege and especially Langara College,
where I went as well,” Sajjan said.
“When you look at the younger genera-
tion, and the importance of the envi-
ronment, this is about demonstrating
that their education institutions are do-
ing it as well, and that their govern-
ment is investing into it.

“We can’t just talk about it; we need
to take action.”

The federal government is providing
$1 million, the provincial government
is providing $584,000 and Langara is
providing an additional $610,000. Part
of a new federal initiative, the Post-Sec-
ondary Institutions Strategic Invest-
ment Fund, $2 billion will be given to

CAITLIN O'FLANAGAN photo
Harjit Sajjan, Minister of National Defence and MP for Vancouver South, announced funding at Langara College on Oct 21 2016.

Building A to be upgraded

Funding will reduce Building A’s energy consumption

Canadian universities and colleges.

President and CEO of Langara Col-
lege, Lane Trotter, said funding and
upgrades will help carry on the school’s
2009-2014 strategy of reducing energy
use on campus.

Ghezal Durrani, criminal justice stu-
dent and Board of Governors member,
looks forward to the school’s improve-
ments, for herself and the community.

“Putting money into colleges or uni-
versities is never a waste of time or
money because it’s an investment into
a better country,” she said.

Langara recently spent $48.9 million
on the new Science & Technology
Building.

FAN
facts

TIMELINE

The replacement of the
1970-era ventilation
system should be
completed by spring
2018.

JOB CREATION

The fan replacement
project will create
approximately 10 direct
and four indirect jobs.

Source: langara.ca

Legacy fund “changed” Studio 58

Fund raised $23,000 more
than expected

By KRISTYN ANTHONY

arts program is expanding thanks

ito the success of the Studio 58 Lega-
cy Fund, which raised almost 10 per
cent more than anticipated.

Initially established to celebrate the
50th anniversary of the program, artis-
tic director Kathryn Shaw, former as-
sociate director Jane Heyman and Stu-
dio 58 graduate Joey Lespérance
conceived the idea over dinner one eve-
ning in the spring of 2014.

In September, the Langara College
Foundation announced the Legacy
Fund had exceeded its original goal of
$250,000. Over 500 individual donors
have contributed to the campaign rais-
ing $136,739, which the college matched.

While it wasn’t clear exactly how the
additional $28,000 would be spent, on
the whole, the fund has given students
opportunities such as working with
professional actress and program alum
Leslie Jones in last season’s production
of The Crowd.

“They had the opportunity to ob-
serve first-hand how a professional ac-

Ls: College’s premiere theatre

tor approaches the work,” Shaw said in
an email to The Voice. “They were able
to ask her questions and get advice on
how to survive in the outside world.”

Cameron Mackenzie, co-founder of
Zee Zee Theatre, is a graduate of Stu-
dio 58 and a donor to the fund.

“Studio 58 is one of the best conser-
vatory theatre programs in the country
and when you look at the resources we
have, it’s laughable,” Mackenzie said.

David Hudgins, associate director of
Studio 58, said the advantages the Leg-

KRISTYN ANTHONY photo
Associate director David Hudgins, takes a seat in the theatre at Studio 58.

acy Fund provides are not always visi-
ble on stage. But he feels it has helped
students, reinforcing the respect peo-
ple have for the program.

“Tt’s changed us. We owe a huge debt
of gratitude to those who donated.”

Hudgins said the fund allowed them
to hire a choreographer for this sea-
son’s musical, 42nd Street. “It gives us
an edge,” he said. “And, it gives the stu-
dents an experience that we wouldn’t
otherwise be able to afford, really en-
hancing their education.”

66

Studio 58 is
one of the
best con-
servatory
theatre
programs
in the
country
and when
you look
at the re-
sources we
have, it’s
laughable

CAMERON MACK-
ENZIE

CO-FOUNDER OF
ZEE ZEE THEATRE