KIDS CAN WIN BIG BUCKS FOR GOOD GRADES’

VANCOUVER (CUP) — High School students are calling it “bucks for sucks.”

But the Vander Zalm government thinks its new programme rewarding good grades with a tuition dis- count at a post-secondary institution will promote healthy com- petition and academic ex- cellence.

Under the *’Passports for Excellence” programme, students in grades nine through 12 will be issued booklets to be stamped for academic ex- cellence. Upon gradua- tion the booklets would be redeemable for rebates on tuition at any B.C. post- secondary institution.

Advanced Education minister, Stan Hagen, said his ministry is considering redemption.values between $500 and $750 per year of

achievement.

NDP _ education Barry Jones said it fails to get to the root of B.C.’s ac- cessibility problem.

critic

The programme help motivate younger stu- dents, he said, but “it’s ma- terialistic and gimmicky.”

What the advanced ed-

ucation system needs most

may

now is not. financial in- centives for students, but enough funding to the in- stitutions to enable them to accept more students, said ‘Jones.

*While this move intro- duces funding at the stu- dent level, there won't be space available unless there is more funding at the uni-

“versity level,” he said.

Byron Hen- der, financial aid director at the University of British Columbia, sat on the min- ister’s advisory cominittee that hatched the plan last spring.

Hender said the pro- gramme was developed to encourage more B.C. stu- dents to seek a_ post- secondary education.

“This is not a financial aid plan,” he said. ~”We want to find those stu- dents with potential and change their attitude to- ward higher education.”

But in a province with limited funding for post- secondary education, any student- directed money should go to those with the greatest needs, said a representative from the Canadian Federa-

Because the one thing AID you don’t want to Hear is + anes YOUVE SOLAIDS, : If you think you cant get it, ’ you're dead wrong.

tion of Students-Pacific Re- gion (CFS).

”There’s a dif- ference between student aid and scholarships, and when people’s needs are met then we should look at differ- ent schemes for rewarding them,” said CFS executive officer Stephen Scott.

“It’s the wrong philos- ophy to encourage people to go to school,” he said, adding that though marks seem a fair way of measur- ing achievement, students from more privileged back- grounds tend to do better.

Elsie McMurphy, presi- dent of the B.C. Teacher’s Federation, says the orga- nization is. concerned the scheme will affect regular school programmes. * "

October is

unicef month & [|

WHY WE LOVE CUP

VANCOUVER (CUP) — Puzzled by some of the articles in the Gem which begin with the acronym “CUP”?

Well, puzzle no more. “CUP” stands for Canadian Uni- versity Press, the oldest na- tional student press organi- zation in the world. That’s right, the world.

Founded in Winnipeg in December 1937, CUP is now gearing up to celebrate its 50th anniversary. The Gem has been a CUP mem- ber for several years. _

An organization with a proud and colourful his- tory, CUP counts many

. noted Canadians among its

alumni, including External Affairs Minister Joe Clark, International Trade Minis- ter Pat Carney, columnist Allan Fotheringham, au- thor Pierre Burton and ra- dio talk show host Peter Gzowski.

Today, as a democrat- ically operated cooperative of nearly 50 Canadian stu- dent newspapers. with a joint circulation of over 300,000, CUP works to

bring you the very best ¢ov<

erage of issues which affect students across the country.

From the Martlet in Victoria, B.C., to the Muse in St. John’s Newfound- land, CUP members can

Nfs

2.. ALWAYS HAVE A FEW) CONDOMS eg THEY MAKE DANDY BALLOON SCULPTURES

S.AVoD DsSehSED PEOPLE

both contribute to and reprint articles from weekly exchanges of stories and graphics. These are com- piled with the help of re- gional bureaux and assem- bled by CUP’s national of- fice, in Ottawa.

From employment to the accessibility of post- secondary education, from financial assistance to AIDS and other health-related is- sues, from student ‘coun- cils to international poli- tics,| CUP ‘circulates’ ‘the*’

‘information’ and ‘analysis

which Canadian students . need to understand the ed- ucational and social policies affecting them. :

While reflecting a di- versity of editorial view- points, CUP members are unified by their statement of shared principles, which identify the student press as “an agent of social change: striving to advance human rights, while work- ing against social injustices such as sexism, racism and homophobia.

With CUP member- ship, the, Gem, ,alsq, Laas

_ the oppeenniy ss belon

ial MIAME PIT FB PIGS ‘to Campus Pp 1s,, a, na-

tional advertising coopera- tive which has returned to CUP members more than $3 million worth of ad rev- enues since its incorpora- tion in 1981. 2

university guide to safe sex

>

. SEAN “ STILL -NO- NICKNAME” PHiLPoTs