A group of about 20 Laurentian University students staged a creative protest Friday to convince members of the school's board of governors not to hike tuition fees by $200.
The students crowded into the elevators in the university's 11-storey Parker Building and pressed all of the buttons. They wanted to slow the elevators down to talk to the board members as they went to their 1 pm meeting and convince them not to vote in favour raising tuition.
“Today is really an awareness thing for our board members because sometimes we feel there is a real disconnect between what goes on the 11th floor of the Parker Building (where administration offices are located) and the students that are here,” said Gabrielle Lemieux, president of the francophone students' association.
“We only have one vote to share on the board of governors between four students' associations.”
This is just the latest in a series of protests by the students. They have also camped outside for a week, attempted to present a “coffin” of student debt to Sudbury MPP Rick Bartolucci and participated in day of action protests.
On Thursday a group of students interrupted a FedNor announcement at the university because they wanted to get their point across to Bartolucci.
“We've done everything we can think of,” says Lemieux. “Clearly our message is not being heard and this is a last resort.”
The Laurentian University Faculty Association (LUFA) has issued a statement saying they support student initiatives aimed at freezing tuition fees.
“The faculty feel very strongly that the students' cause is right and important,” said sociology professor Kaili Beck, who attended the elevator protest.
“We need to support them because they've always supported us in times of conflict between us and administration over collective agreements.”
