Ciara Galvin
ciaragalvin@mayonews.ie
Students are facing another round of cuts to education in Budget 2013. These cuts will compound the impact of delays in grant allocations, which have already seen some college students frozen out of essential services, such as libraries and computers.
The Students’ Union of Ireland is launching a month-long series of public meetings to discuss the cost of education. The meetings, the first of which took place last night (Monday), will look at fees and educational costs ahead of the upcoming budget and will be attended by local TDs, councillors, third-level and secondary-school students and parents.
The meetings are being held to create awareness in local communities and ensure that public representatives understand the financial difficulties facing both families who have children in third-level education and those with children who hope to progress to college.
Speaking ahead of last night’s meeting, GMIT Student Union President Clare Lawlor spoke to The Mayo News about what students hoped to gain from discussions.
“We want the government to be fair. We understand that we have to pay money to go to college, but the fees keep increasing and the grant keeps decreasing. People can’t afford to go to college anymore,” she said.
Ms Lawlor explained that she wants councillors and TDs to be on their side. Although she is no longer in college, Lawlor is aware that cuts will result in her younger sisters not being able to afford third-level education.
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